Demons of Vegas
by RebelByrdie
Summary: Someone is visciously murdering blue eyed blonde teenagers and the CSIs are working against the clock. When it comes down to life and death, will Sara be able to save the day or will she lose everything? Warning: Femeslash and Charecter Owchies.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters, premises of or anything to do with the television show, CSI. I make no financial gain from the production of this twisted tale. All recognizable material is the property of the creators and the television networks who hold the contract rights there of. All "original" characters are fictional and any similarities to existing or deceased (or other fictional) persons is completely coincidental and no harm is meant.

**Rated M for Mature:** Scenes of graphic violence, mature sexual content and explicit scenes, adult situations and themes and coarse language.

**Warning:** While this tale is case/action oriented, it also deals with the idea of a loving relationship between two women. Specifically, Sara Sidle and Sofia Curtis...though I am not limiting this disclaimer to those two ladies. Nothing is graphic, nor over-done. This isn't pure smut or PWP, their relationship is only one facet in this very complex tale. Still, if this idea does not sit well with you, I suggest you stop reading this story before you're infected by the femeslash.

There are some other pairings or issues that shall be addressed in this tale...but I think I'll keep some secrets.

**Spoiler Warning:** The following fic includes spoilers for all CSI episodes up to the season 6 finale, _Way to Go_. If, for whatever reason, you've yet to see this episode, and don't want to have it ruined for you, stop reading and wait until later. Trust me, I'll still be here...waiting by the computer wondering when you're going to come back...You know you will.

**Author's Note:** Part II of III. Demons of Vegas. (Previously titled Monsters of Vegas) Very dark plot that, while keeping with the ensemble feeling, centers around Catherine, Lindsey, Sara, and Sofia. Angst, guilt and a twisted killer... With a title like 'Demons of Vegas'... what you were expecting fluff?

While this story can stand alone, it is only one part of a three part series. I recommend reading _Part I: Angels of Vegas_, and the upcoming _Part III: Gods of Vegas_ to get the full impact of character-use and continuality...and all that good stuff.

I've been told that my Author's Notes are quite extensive...almost to the point of homicide-inducingly so...ah, well...it's worth it, I promise.

This story has been allot of fun to write...a little edgier then I usually do...so I'm anxious to see how it's going to turn out. Bringing back some old faces, introducing some new ones...lots of fun to be had. So, here we go...Enjoy.

Character owchies ahead...

_Italics _represent, along with chapter number and title, flashback or dream sequences.

Now beta read for your pleasure! Big thanks go out to HoneyLynx86 for correcting many many glaring errors!

**Demons of Vegas**

**Part II of III **

**A CSI Tale**

**By RebelByrdie**

_Previously on CSI: (Selected Scenes from Angels of Vegas)_

_Catherine caught up with Warrick. "Hey, you mind giving me a ride back to the labs?" He shook his head, "Nah, come on, let's get you to your car so you can get home to Lindsey, how is she, by the way?" He always asked after Lindsey, the teen was a big part of Catherine's life. Catherine sighed, "She's getting better, but she still thinks the world revolves around her, but she's fourteen so that's to be expected." He shrugged, "It's a tough age." Catherine sighed and attempted to rub the fatigue from her blue eyes. "I love her though."_

* * *

"_Catherine, you think what you want about Sara, but she's my friend and I'm going to defend her. You ride her too much as it is, but don't you say she doesn't care about Jim. This is killing her on the inside. Take a look at her the next time you see her. Bags under the eyes, fake smiles, she's been picking at her food. Before you jump to conclusions you should really look at her." He pulled to a stop in the lab's parking lot, two spaces over from Catherine's car. "Lighten up on Sara, she's not as bad as you make her out to be...and she could really use some good friends."_

* * *

_They balanced out the food between them and when they got to a table, Sara grinned when Sofia pulled a chair out for her. "My, my, Sofia, you're acting like this is our first date." The blonde snagged her cup of coffee and grinned, "If this is a date, why did I pay for my own coffee?" Sara sat down across from her and grabbed at her own coffee, "Hey, I got you the danish, didn't I!" Sofia's blue eyes twinkled, "So you did."_

* * *

_Catherine didn't know how Sara knew when Lindsey was due at school, and wouldn't wonder about it until later. "Did I ask for your input, Sidle?" Sara blinked, "I'm just trying to help, Catherine." Catherine's blue eyes narrowed. "You are the last person I would ask for help with my daughter."_

* * *

_Tina sighed and moved closer. She reached out and took his hand, her own hands were trembling. "I got that call and I couldn't breathe, Warrick...maybe...maybe I was wrong...I still love you, Warrick Brown...maybe we can try again..."_

* * *

_Grissom blinked. "You never told me you wanted to be a doctor." Sara shrugged again and stared off past Grissom, back into her own past. "There's a lot of things you don't know about me...I really don't want to talk about it."_

* * *

_Catherine couldn't argue with the evidence though and it was screaming that Tina was still in his heart...she was still Warrick's wife...and that was something she could not...would not interfere with. A lump came to her throat and a pang sang through her heart. She'd missed her chance...again._

* * *

_"Walking me to the door, you act like this is a first..." Sofia cut her off, "Third date, Sidle, it's our third date...of sorts...so I have no problem doing this." She moved her hand up to Sara's, holding it in place against her face. Her other hand moved around Sara's waist, pulling her closer. Their lips met in a chaste, sweet kiss. It was short and utterly breathe taking._

* * *

_Gilbert Grissom was in his office, opposite of him sat the Sheriff himself. "Gil...it's a damn shame what happened to Warrick...But two CSIs and a detective taking off like bats outta hell is not the answer." The political beast, the Sheriff of Clark County, tugged at his tie. "Christ, they went in there, busting down gates and doors like Charlie's Frickin' Angels." Grissom sighed, "The uniform was supposed to be there. I think you're missing the point where they saved Warrick's life." The Sheriff shook his head, "And you're missing the big picture, Gil. I can't have my people running around like vigilantes. The McQueen's lawyer is already raising seven kinds of hell because he had his face busted up." Grissom arched a brow, "I have no control over Detective Curtis." The Sheriff shook his head, "That's bullshit and you know it, Grissom. With Brass down...everyone is looking to you...I'm going to overlook this...behavior this time, but Sidle and Willows are walking fine lines...I don't want to lose them either, Grissom, they're damn good investigators...but CSIs don't bust down doors, threaten uniformed officers or fly down highways like stunt- drivers." He stood. "Get your people under control, Grissom...before they hurt someone...or get the lab in deeper shit then it's already in."_

* * *

_Tina looked at her gold wedding band, sitting there in the palm of her hand. "Goodbye Warrick."_

* * *

_Prologue_

_She was back in the stifling metal shack again. The smell of death hung in the air and she pumped her hands on Warrick's chest, trying to force air into his lungs. Her rhythmic counting and occasional plea for Warrick to breathe fell uselessly from her lips. Behind her, Catherine was screaming at her. "Why can't you save him!" _

_From somewhere far away the shrill scream of a flat line sounded._

_Then in the blink of an eye, it wasn't Warrick before her...It was a little girl with raven curls and big hazel eyes. Sara was drenched in her blood. Everything from her elbow down was slick and red. Catherine's screams began to over-lap with a voice from the past. "SAVE WARRICK...SAVE ANNA...SAVE LINDSEY!"_

_The monotone sound of the never ending flat line ate away at Sara's sanity._

_The faces changed...flashing before her...patients she'd lost...victims she couldn't save...Murder victims whose voice were never heard; families that never saw justice. Everything spun around here like a sickening carnival ride - faces, bodies, blood. The failures of Sara Sidle._

_When everything came back in to focus, she was still bloody but the body under her was different. Vacant blue eyes stared up at her, glassy and cold, like a forgotten doll's. Sara's hands were inside a wide open chest cavity, trying to shock life back into Sofia Curtis's still heart. _

_The grisly scene faded gray and Sara heard a zipping sound. Only when the darkness closed in did she realize that the zipping sound was David closing a body bag...with her inside. She tried to scream at him to let her out. The darkness swallowed Sara's screams._

Sara bolted up in bed. The sounds of her very real screams fading into the early evening. She rested her head against her knees and tried to regulate her breathing...it was just another nightmare...it was only a dream. That was her mantra. It was only a dream. Another dream in a line of never ending fright-fests that had been chipping away at her psyche for most of her life.


	2. Chapter I: Empty

_Chapter I_

_Empty_

Carrol Winters came home to an empty house. She set her purse and keys on the small table by the door.

"NADINE, WHERE ARE YOU!" Her thirteen year old daughter did not answer.

Carrol wracked her brain, trying to recall if Nadine had some kind of practice or game or club meeting today, perhaps a sleep over at a friends. Carrol made her way to the kitchen, the hub of the house hold. There was nothing noted on the month-at-a-glance calender and no note on the table. Carrol frowned and went over to the answering machine. There were three messages on the machine. The first was from Luke, a coworker of hers whose fondest wish involved her in the copy room sans clothing. She deleted it almost immediately. The second message was a hang up and the third message was from Dr. Neely, Nadine's orthodontist. He was confirming Friday's appointment. There was nothing from Nadine.

Panic didn't come first, annoyance did. Nadine was usually so responsible...it just wasn't like her to run around and not tell her first. She was going to find herself grounded. No phone, no TV, no friends, no computer. She pulled out the list of Nadine's friends's numbers and started dialing.

Twenty fruitless calls later, true panic had set into her heart. She could not find Nadine. In fact, none of her friends had seen her all afternoon. Carrol's next call was to the police.

* * *

Little Nadine was perfect, a perfect little girl Golden hair, blue eyes, she was perfect. She sat there on the little bed in the corner of the room that had been designed just for her. She was crying, but that would soon pass. She would realize that this was where she belonged, this was her home now.

"I WANNA GO HOME!" The young girl's voice cracked as she continued to sob. Cries of "I wanna go home" became a constant mantra.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! YOU ARE HOME!"

The girl would not be quiet. She was misbehaving...she had to be punished.


	3. Chapter II: Comfort and Satisfaction

_Chapter II_

_Comfort and Satisfaction_

There were two times, and only two during which Catherine regretted her decision to stop smoking: when cases hit dead ends and cold trails, and after really good sex.

So as Wendy Simms picked up her clothes, Catherine itched to light up. After retrieving her bra from the doorknob, the brunette smiled at Catherine. The arrangement they had was very satisfactory. Neither of them wanted strings, and neither of them, thank God, was in danger of falling in love. No, their trysts were more about comfort, satisfaction, and pure animal lust.

Catherine used it as a quick-fix for what she couldn't have, namely Warrick Brown. Warrick had become, over the last few months, her obsession. The proverbial forbidden fruit. She also knew that Wendy was casually dating Greg.

The woman in question was buttoning up her shirt. When she was done with that, she ran a hand through her tousled hair. The innocuous action made Catherine's thoroughly sated body warm up again.

With another sensual smile and a slight wave of her clever fingers, Wendy left her. "See you around, Catherine." Catherine nodded and watched Wendy leave. Oh yes, she would see the woman around. Their fling had not, as Catherine had feared it might, affected their working relationship. Hell, Catherine often found that her DNA requests went strait to the top of the pile.

She and Wendy weren't dating, they were using each other. Not that Catherine was complaining, because she certainly was not. Warrick was still hip deep in his divorce and well, Catherine couldn't have him anyway...so she settled for Wendy. All in all it wasn't that bad of a deal. Wendy took the edge off and she was safe and sexy; just what Catherine needed at a time like this.

* * *

It was official, he was a free man. Warrick knew that he lived in the Single Guy's Mecca. If he chose to, he could be surrounded by walking wet dreams in a heart beat. Unfortunately or was it fortunately, he wasn't actually sure, all of his dreams were devoted to one woman. Catherine Willows was his fantasy, his muse, his obsession. She'd once told him that he had been one of her fantasies. She was that to him and more, oh so much more. 

The problem with fantasies, however, was that they never took into account all the facts and idiosyncrasies of reality. One such tidbit was the fact that Catherine was, at the moment, enjoying to company of Wendy from DNA.

Oh, they were very discrete, very professional. Warrick, however, had spent years studying Cathierne, watching her. He'd memorized and categorized her every expression. He could decipher the meaning behind every quirk of her eyebrow and every twitch of her lip. It was an addiction of the worst kind.

He'd watched Wendy and Catherine together. He'd seeing the long, lingering stares and the passion heated glances.

Had Wendy been one of Catherine's fantasies too? He wanted Catherine, but not like that. He didn't want a casual roll in the hay, not by a long shot. He didn't want to be another one of Catherine's sexual conquests, not another notch on the headboard. He didn't want to be just a fantasy fulfilled.

Author's Note: Yes, Catherine and Wendy.


	4. Chapter III: Little Girls

_Chapter III_

_Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice_

If little girls were made of sugar and spice, Sara was pretty sure that Catherine Willows had more then her fair share of spice...Chinese mustard, to be exact. The good stuff, the kind that could only be found in Frisco's China Town. The kind that made you physically hurt when you ate it...that was what Catherine Willows was made of. The Sidle-Willows relationship went in a cycle, which had not altered in the almost-seven years Sara had been in Vegas. Viscous verbal battles that rattled the lab walls, cold silence, luke-warm co-existence, lather-rinse repeat. In the first two months after Warrick's brush with death, they had evened out...tolerating each other. They had been almost friendly.

Then, like a full moon rising, the Montoya case had destroyed the momentary cease-fire they'd come to. The details of the case were, sadly enough, like a thousand others that Sara had seen. A young woman taken advantage of and raped. When she had reported it, the rapist, who was also her boss, had killed her. It was the ultimate form of being fired.

Grissom, in all of his misplaced wisdom, had paired them together. All it had taken was a small disagreement about blood spatter and everything had blown up. Not even Warrick had been able to diffuse the situation. That had been a month ago. Sara was almost glad that they'd arrived at the cold stage. She'd take hypothermia over flesh-eating acid any day of the week. If it hadn't been for Sofia...

Sofia, Detective Sofia Curtis. The oh-so-sexy detective had firmly planted herself at a place that was damn close to the center of Sara's universe. A slow smile crossed her face, and all thoughts of Catherine were chased away by much brighter thoughts.

* * *

Sara's not so kind musings and observations kept her quiet, which was fine with her companion. Catherine was in a foul mood, to say the least. Lindsey had decided to play the part of 'spoiled brat' again. Catherine just didn't know what to do with the girl. She loved her daughter to death...but she was so...difficult these days. Fights punctuated by 'Whatever' and 'Fine' made Catherine wish her little girl was still little. 

She glanced over at Sara. The woman was staring into the distance, smiling. A slight pang of annoyance passed through Catherine. Everything was just perfect for Grissom's little pet. She had a boyfriend. The moody CSI had said nothing but Catherine could see the signs. Plus she had become the darling of the lab when she'd performed emergency CPR on Warrick. Not that she wasn't grateful that Sara had been able to save him...but it had been two months ago. It was time for the fanfare to end and the Sara Sidle fan-club to disperse.

They arrived at the house that the call had come from. It was another missing child, an AMBER alert. These cases always tore at her the most. Every time she saw a child roll into the morgue, she couldn't help but think of losing Linds. Sara, cool as ever, hopped out of the SUV and was already talking to the uniforms. Catherine trailed behind her, intent on comforting the mother as much as possible while still doing her job.

Two women made their way to the Winters home. To an onlooker, they were, with the exception of their careers, nothing alike.

A tall brunette with wary eyes and an ever present tenseness. She was dressed in the dark, subdued tones of the night.

A blonde who was fire contained in a well-presented female package. Unlike her colleague, she was dressed to impress, in an outfit that danced the line between professional and provocative.

Sara used cool logic, intuition and hard-headed determination to solve crimes, throwing everything in until she had nothing more to give.

Catherine worked the puzzle of the case, methodically. She used her experiences as a mother and a woman to come up with her answers.

They balanced each other out. That was why they worked so well together. Their different approaches brought the best of two worlds to the table...it was also why they were constantly at each other's throats; their best quality was also their worst.

Never the less, Carrol Winters had the best team in Vegas working on her daughter's case.

The house was cookie-cutter home in an upper middle class neighborhood. Uniforms had swarmed it. An AMBER alert was serious business in Vegas. Sara and Catherine made their way to the door.

* * *

The inside of the home was tastefully decorated, though Sara had seen thousands of homes just like it. There was nothing strange or out of place. If someone were to photograph it, the picture's name would be, simply, mediocrity. Not that being normal and a little on the bland side was bad. Sara would have traded an arm to have what would have been considered a "normal" childhood.

Speaking of which, photos of the child in question adorned the walls. Her name was Nadine Renee Winters, and she was thirteen years old. Sara studied the picture of her. She had blonde hair, blue eyes and, if this particular picture was recent, braces. They made their way to the den, where the mother was. Along the way, Sara continued to look at the pictures that documented the life of Nadine Winters. She was a soccer player, and was in something called 'Scribes' which, from the quill on the tee-shirt the kids wore, was some kind of a writing club. There were pictures of the girl at birthday parties with friends, Christmases with family. She was a perfectly normal little girl. A little girl who was missing.

Catherine had already honed in on the mother, which was good. Catherine was a mother herself and would be able to understand the victim better.

Sara inclined her head in sympathy. "Ma'am, I'd like to take a look at your daughter's room."

Nadine's mother, Carrol nodded and pointed to the hallway, "It's the third door on the right." Sara nodded.

* * *

Catherine sat across from Carrol Winters. The woman was ragged, which was understandable. She was living Catherine's own worst nightmare, every mother's worst nightmare.

Catherine gave her a comforting pat on the shoulder. "I know this is very hard for you, but can you tell me what your daughter's schedule for the day was?" Detective Vega, when he'd heard that she'd been assigned the case, had held off from questioning Ms. Winters.

The woman drew in a shaky breathe. "I dropped her off at school, Greenspun Middle, and then I went to work. I'm a teller down at the Henderson branch of Las Vegas Banking Inc. I came home and found the house empty. I called Nadine's friends, her coach, even her favorite teacher, nothing." She looked up, her green eyes incredibly weary. "She wouldn't run away...Nadine's just not like that. She's a happy normal little girl...my little girl." Catherine felt a tear stream down her cheek, her heart broke for Carrol Winters.

* * *

It was, Sara decided, definitely the room of a thirteen year old girl. There were still stuffed animals on the bed, but there were also posters of Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom and that guy who played the teenage Superman all over the walls. Sara looked around, nothing was out of the ordinary. The DSL was online and the girl's email was open. Sara glanced at it, but it consisted of a mailing list for something called _'Degrassi' _and an email from another friend who apparently thought fifty percent of the English language consisted of words like 'so' and 'omg' and 'squee'. It was all Greek to Sara. The general feeling got through though: Nadine had been happy. She didn't appear to be a candidate for running away. It looked like, unfortunately, a foul play.

* * *

Carrol Winters shook her head. "Her father, Jerry, lives in Carson City. She only sees him once a month. He didn't do this."

Catherine nodded and inwardly sighed. The more she learned about young Nadine Winters, the more she feared that the girl really had been kidnapped. She had not been seen since three o' clock that afternoon and it was edging towards midnight. She'd been missing for nine hours and counting.


	5. Chapter IV: Discoveries in the Night

_Chapter IV_

_Discoveries in the Night_

Maria Rymer was giving up the single life. In less then a week she would be walking down the aisle. At the moment, she and her bridesmaids were just a little on the tipsy side. Kara, a cop, had declared them all over the limit and none of them had enough cash for a cab, so they walked. They cut through Baker Park, because Hallie's place was the closest and walking through the park would shave a good ten minutes off of their walk.

Stumbling ever so slightly, they made their way through the shadowy park. "'Ria, I can not believe you flirted with that stripper!" Erin burst into a bout of giggles. Hallie jumped in too, "Yea, not all of us are taking the plunge, I'll never be able to go back to Ladies Night again!" That remark sent a tidal wave of drunken laughter through the four women. Maria had to grab onto the swing set's pole for support.

She was about to make a lewd comment about the number of times Hallie had been to the strip-joint when Erin stopped her. "Hey, what's that?" Maria turned and focused on a lump in the middle of the play-park. "Dunno...dog?"

Kara followed behind her friends, who were worried about a dog or something. Fifty feet from the object though, a realization cut through the alcohol. "Shit!" She started to jog and when she got there, she cursed again. It was no dog.

"HALLIE!" Hallie, a nurse, came to her side. "Oh my God." The petite blonde bent down and tried to find a pulse, there was none. "She's dead."

Erin, who had never even been to a funeral with an open casket gasped and got all of three feet away before vomiting.

It was physically impossible to become instantly sober, but Kara was experiencing something very much akin to it. She pulled out her phone and dialed the dispatcher. "This is Lieutenant Kara Johnson, I've got a 419 at Baker Park. We need Homicide and the Geek Squad out here..."

Maria squinted at the body and made a connection that the other three hadn't yet. With Kara still on the phone with 911 and Hallie comforting the ill Erin, it was easy to slip away. She pulled out her own cellphone. Maria Rymer had never missed a scoop in her career and did not intend to start now. When the grumpy voice of her producer answered her call, she launched strait into an explanation. "Ted, it's Maria, listen I've got a story. That missing kid, the one the AMBER alert went out for...She's just been found murdered in Baker Park. Send out a crew..." She shut the phone and looked around. She could already hear the sirens coming their way.

* * *

The very familiar sight of blue lights and yellow tape met Sofia's gaze as she pulled into the Baker Park parking lot. A large black SUV and the coroner's van were already there. She ducked under the tape and started towards the scene, a uniform filling her in as they walked.

She took everything in with a critical investigator's eye. David was already with the body and she could see two CSIs, Greg Sanders and Gil Grissom, working the scene. She looked around some more.

The LVPD was still very much a boy's club so she immediately recognized Lieutenant Johnson. As Johnson was SWAT, Sofia realized that she had to be the one who had found the body. Sofia's stride took her across to the four women that had found the body. The reek of alcohol coming from them told Sofia that they had recently left a bar somewhere. She resisted the urge to groan. They were drunk, perfect.

Johnson looked up. "Curtis."

Sofia inclined her head. Johnson sighed, "Yes, I'm drunk. No, I didn't touch the body, Hallie Underwood, the blonde, is a nurse and she checked for a pulse. When I realized we had a 419 I called it in and backed up, giving you a hundred foot perimeter. We've given our shoe prints to the Geek Squad along with fingerprints." The woman's voice was steady, even though she was slurring a bit. The brunette sighed, "How bad did I fuck up, Sofia?" The sudden change in demeanor, from professional to personal, made Sofia look up. "Well, you're drunk, but I know that Alpha has today and tomorrow off, so that shouldn't be a problem. You've followed SOP and reported everything. It doesn't look good, but beyond IAB jerking your chain, you should be okay." The brunette woman nodded. "Thanks." Sofia nodded and turned away, she needed to focus on the crime.

The body was lying in what looked to be the middle of the park, between two arched set of monkey bars. Vacant eyes stared up at the stars. The girl was dressed in a long white dress and her blonde hair was lying under her head like a halo; the combination gave the girl an angelic appearance. Sofia approached the body, careful not to disturb any evidence.

The coroner looked up. "Sofia."

She knelt by the body. "What can you tell me?" David frowned, "Young girl, approximately thirteen years of age. Her throat was slit, she bled out. What gets me, though, is that the body was washed and redressed post-mortem. He frowned, "Which throws off my liver temp measurements, but from mortis I'd say she's been dead for around twelve hours."

"But she wasn't put here until a few hours ago. There is not sufficient insect activity to suggest otherwise."

Sofia looked up into the intelligent eyes of Gilbert Grissom. "That and I think someone might have noticed a dead little girl in the middle of the day, Grissom." He nodded, "True."

She looked around the site, "What else can you tell me?" Grissom frowned, "This is a body-dump. There is very little evidence around here. We need to find the primary site." Sofia nodded and then looked back at the body. "Well, she's been washed and redressed. White dress, could signify purity. We could be looking at some kind of cult activity, or someone who wants us to look at cult activity."

Grissom knelt down beside David. "There's an abrasion on the lower lip, looks post-postmortem." Sofia nodded and looked the body over. "No markings outside of the lip abrasion and the neck wound."

She stood. "Theres an AMBER alert out for a girl about this age. I want to check that out."

She went with a uniform, they could upload and print a picture of the girl from his squad car's computer. When they got back to the parking lot, Sofia was blinded by a bright flash. She threw her hand in front of her eyes. A rush of questions came at her.

"DETECTIVE, IS THAT NADINE WINTERS!"

"HOW WAS SHE KILLED!"

Sofia sputtered out a "No comment" and rushed to the car. When she and the uniform were inside, she cursed. "How the hell did the press get a hold of this so quickly?" The uniform frowned, "I bet it was one of the girls that found her, that redhead is a reporter for Channel 5." Sofia cursed again and ran her hands through her hair. "Damn."

* * *

Catherine, searching for a way to numb the pain Carrol Winters must have been feeling, turned on the television. It flickered on to the news and Carrol Winters screamed.

Author's Note: Well, here we are, at the beginning of another twisted tale. For those of you who are interested, I suppose we've gone about a month and a half, or two months since 'Angels'. Yes, there will be lots of Sara/Sofia coming up, so no worries. I actually drew up a chart to figure out all the relationships and relationship angst I was using in this trilogy. It sort of looked like a soap opera...so I wadded up that paper and threw it away.

I'd love to hear what everyone thinks about the story so far. Hurl the reviews at me, good or bad, I am always looking for ways to better my writing.


	6. Chapter V: The Same Case

Author's Note: Argh. I lost my beta-ed version of this chapter, so all the errors are mine.

_Chapter V_

_The Same Case_

Sara, who had been finishing up in the bedroom heard the scream and she immediately drew her gun. She moved down the hall, heart pounding, "CATHERINE!" The other CSI's voice came from the den. "Get in here Sara." Catherine's voice was not panicked, only highly pissed. Sara holstered her gun and went strait to the den. She came in and immediately saw why Carrol Winters had screamed. The television was on the midnight news on Channel 5. Sofia's cry of "No comment." echoed and the camera panned to a very stoic reporter. "That was Detective Sofia Curtis with the LVPD, while she gives us a no comment, she later went back to the scene with a picture of the girl in question." A picture of Nadine came on the screen. "Nadine Winters was reported missing earlier today. Sources say that the positioning and condition of the body indicates that this was a cult-related killing." Catherine had a sobbing Carrol in her arms. Sara found the remote and turned the television off. "You don't need to see this, Ms. Winters." Her comment only made the woman sob harder.

Only moments later, Sara's cell phone rang. Leaving Catherine with the grieving mother, Sara stepped outside. That was a mistake, because camped outside the door like sharks circling the kill was the press. Sara instantly found herself staring at cameras and journalists. She quickly closed the door. "Damn." A low, cynical chuckle came over the phone. "I guess you'll have your own television spot to go along with mine in a minute, huh." Sara sighed and leaned against the wall. Not that it wasn't good to hear Sofia's voice, she only wished it were in nicer circumstances. "Can you confirm?" There was a sigh, "We're working the same case."

Sara's free hand came up to massage the bridge of her nose. "Catherine's in with the mother. She saw the news." Sofia's curse echoed Sara's own thoughts. They stood there for a moment, sharing a silence. Finally, Sofia sighed, "David's taking the body now. I suggest we all meet back at the labs and try to sort this out."

* * *

At two thirty in the morning, Grissom, Catherine, Greg, Sara and Sofia met in one of the lay out rooms. They were quickly joined by Albert Robbins, ME. He looked from one face to another and put his report on the table. "COD is obvious in this one. What is interesting is the mouth. Nadine Winters had braces when she went missing but when she was found, she did not. I examined the inside of her cheeks, and there is the usual scaring that goes along with orthodontic work. The cut on her lower lip is extremly ragged. Someone removed the braces with a pair of shop pliers, I think." He sighed, "There were no defensive wounds, and the tox screen hasn't come back yet, but I am pretty sure that she was not drugged. It looks like she went willingly." 

Grissom frowned, "She may know her killer." He looked to Catherine. The woman went stiff. "It's not the mother and the father lives in Carson City." She turned to Sofia, "And thanks for going on the news, by the way, the mother saw that. Hell of a way to break the news, Curtis." Grissom held up a hand to silence her. "One of the women who found the body was a reporter, she called it in, Catherine. We're not going to play the blame game here. We've got a case to work." Catherine looked up, "Who's got it?" Sofia shrugged, "Vega and I will be working the case together for the moment." That was, of course, not what Catherine had been asking.

Sara rolled her eyes. Catherine was already getting attached to the victim, not to mention that Catherine would not pass up an opportunity to work a high profile case. Grissom frowned, "Catherine, you, Sara and Greg will take this one." Catherine nodded, "It looks like tonights going to stretch into tomorrow."


	7. Chapter VI: Evidence or Lack Thereof

_Chapter VI_

_Evidence or Lack There Of_

Catherine stood over the body on the ME's table. The girl's throat had been cut and she'd bled out, like an animal about to be slaughtered. Postmortem, the killer had washed the girl and redressed her. The body still had the slight scent of baby powder and Johnson's Tear Free Shampoo. It struck Catherine as odd, the careful treatment of the body after death. She filed that away for later. The dress and Mary Jane shoes were new, but they were unremarkable. The dress could have come from any number of Department stores and the shoes could probably be found at every Wal-Mart in the nation. Catherine had sent the white ribbon from the girl's blonde hair to the print lab.

In the eerie lighting of the Autopsy Bay, Nadine Winters looked very much like Lindsey Willows and that scared Catherine down to the very core of her soul.

* * *

Sara was bent over the white dress and Mary Jane shoes. Just as Catherine had said when she'd dropped the clothes off, they were nondescript. Sara tape lifted a light powder from the crevice in the heel of the shoe's sole. She carefully labeled it and looked at the white dress. It was pretty without being frilly, youthful without being babyish. It was, she supposed, a staple in every little girl's wardrobe.

Sara scowled at the clothes, she'd done everything she could to lift some kind of clue or idea from them. All she had was a so-far unidentified powder.

She pushed her hair back behind her ears one more time and blew out a sigh. There was nothing else there to find. She rested her head in her hands and tried to go through the steps. If the physical evidence wasn't there, they'd go for witness accounts and circumstantial. What did they know? Nadine Winters had been a normal little girl and was, by all accounts and observations, happy. Sara sighed. Where to start? The school, she'd last been seen at her school. She looked at her watch, schools didn't even start until nine o'clock and it was three in the morning. All she could do was wait. Sara hated waiting, it was the worst part of her job. Waiting for results, waiting for a confession, waiting for the next case. Patience had never been one of her virtues.

She looked around. The lab's glass walls allowed her a glimpse into all of the other labs. Catherine and Wendy were bent over something in DNA. Sara had to smirk, those two were about as subtle as a bright purple Sherman tank.

In the trace lab, Hodges was bent over his microscope. In one of the other layout rooms, Nick and Warrick were going over their own case, which was not as sensational as theirs, but it was solvable. She knew that Greg was combing the databases, looking for matching cases and Grissom, Grissom was holed up in his office doing whatever it was he did.

She sighed and carefully rebagged the clothes. She would put them in the evidence locker and hope that someone else had turned up something.

* * *


	8. Chapter VII: Candy From Strangers

_Chapter VII_

_Candy from Strangers_

Molly Black adjusted the backpack again. The old straps dug into her bare shoulders uncomfortably. Her blonde hair was hidden under the baseball cap. The cap, like the rest of her clothes and almost all of her possessions, had been inherited from one of her older siblings. Carrie's old shirt, Brian's old jeans, Tori's old shoes, Luke's old cap, Frank's old backpack. The only thing that was hers and hers alone were the cheap glasses she wore. She was walking along the edge of the blacktop. It was a mile walk from school to home and she was only half way done with it. The desert sun bore down and made her sweat in the hot, stale afternoon. She put the ear buds of her CD player, which she'd won in a poker match at lunch a few weeks back, on her ears and hit play. The burnt CD she'd gotten from a friend started and the sounds of urban Las Vegas were blotted out by the heavy techno bass of Hi-Def, her favorite rapper.

With the music playing, Molly's mind made the switch from school to home. When she got home she would have to cook dinner, make sure her younger brother and sister did their homework and check on Nana. Her assorted older siblings and parents would not get into until late, they all had jobs. At twelve she wasn't old enough to have a job, but she kept the household running as smoothly as she could.

When a large white car rolled to a stop beside her, she tensed. She wasn't in Gang territory, but you could never be too careful. The back window rolled down and Molly prepared herself for the worst. Perverts, serial killers, muggers. When the air conditioning hit her face and she saw who was in the back seat, she smiled and quickly took the cap off her head. "Hello." The suave and cultured voice came out of the car, "I thought I recognized you, it's Molly, right?" She nodded, "Yes. I really enjoyed your talk today." The speaker nodded, "Well, it's pretty hot out here, young lady. How about I have my driver drop you off, we can talk some more, you had some very smart questions earlier.

Molly's mother had always told her not to take candy from strangers, but this was different. She smiled and the door opened for her. Molly had never been in a limo.

Molly Black never made it home.

Author's Note: Three Chapters in one night. I spoil you, all five of you.


	9. Chapter VIII: Trip to the Zoo

_Chapter VIII_

_Trip to the Zoo_

The hours had blurred together, somehow it was night again. The day had passed in a haze of dead ends and empty theories. Sara grimaced at the slightly scorched taste of what had to be Nick's attempt at coffee. She sighed and drank the sludge anyway, happy to have the caffeine pouring into her system. She had showered and changed earlier that afternoon and had stopped around eight for food, but other then that, she'd worked the case. All those hours and she was still no closer to finding out who killed Nadine Winters.

* * *

Sofia sighed and graciously accepted the cup of coffee that Vega handed her. They'd pounded the ground all day and into the night and were at a loss. He stretched, "I don't know about you, Curtis, but I am going to catch a nap in the crib." She nodded, "I'll page if something comes up." He nodded, "I do three hours and then you get three." She smiled, "Sounds good." She sipped the coffee and stretched her legs under her desk. She was halfway through a never ending paperwork.

The Homicide Bullpen was mostly dark and deserted. Usually Brass kept late hours too, but he had yet to return to full duty so his office was dark. She watched Vega go back to the small room where all of the detectives had collapsed and caught a few hours of much needed sleep. It wasn't a very appealing option, but Sofia had found herself happy to sleep there on more then one occasion.

The case file in front of her was depressingly thin. Nadine Winters's killer had left nary a clue. Sofia had a gut feeling though that they hadn't seen the last of this killer. He would strike again before they would be able to stop him.

* * *

Edwin Franco made his late rounds around the 'Africa' exhibit. He knew that the Hyenas would be up and about, but most of the animals had long ago resigned themselves to being creatures of the day. Vegas was a city made famous for it's show animals and this was where show animals came when their stage days were over. The Vegas Zoo was not the most glamorous one in the nation, but it held its ground rather well. Edwin, Eddie to his friends, was the Night Keeper. It was, he knew, a crap job for the new guy. He could deal with that. During the day he was going to Veterinary School and the night watch gave him plenty of time to study. 

A quick check told him that the lions had all bedded down so he headed over to the Zebra and Antelope habitat. There in the middle of the pathway was a white lump. "Shit!" He started to run. One of the zebras must have gotten out. It wasn't supposed to happen and he wasn't even sure it was possible. When he got closer he cursed again. It was not a zebra.

* * *

Sara hated Zoos. They'd always crept her out. The fact that a second little girl had been found dead in one of the "humane" animal prisons did not make her like them any more. The zoo was lit up against the dark desert night. The animals, unused to such an uproar in their schedule were pacing in their habitats. Sara sighed and hefted her kit. The yellow tape stood out against the strategically placed greenery and viewing areas. David, the coroner, was frowning down at the body, his face stoic. Greg was behind her and Catherine was on her way. For the moment, though, it was just Sara and the scene. She bent down and began snapping photos, meticulously documenting everything and anything that could be helpful. It was almost identical to the first case. A little girl, a bit younger then the first, was laid on her back. She had blonde hair and was dressed in a white dress. Sara frowned.

From behind her, a familiar voice sounded, "We've either got a serial or a copycat." Sara straightened up and turned to face Sofia. "It could be either. David says she's only been dead a few hours." Sofia nodded, "Zoo keeper found her. He said he thought she was a zebra." Sara shook her head. "Definitely not a zebra." Sofia sighed and gazed down at the body. "No ID yet, and we've not got any more 'Missing Persons' reports." Sara sighed, "I've got Greg on perimeter and Catherine is in route." Sofia nodded, "Vega is questioning the witness."

Sofia massaged the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. "I have a feeling that our day off is going to be canceled." Sara, after checking to see that no one was paying attention, took Sofia's free hand in hers and gave it a quick squeeze. "I'm sorry." Sofia smiled, "Me too...but neither of us would really be able to enjoy _The Devil Wears Prada _with the case going on." Sara rolled her eyes, "I don't understand why we have to go see it, you've read the book." Sofia's blue eyes danced with amusement, "That's not the point, besides you were the one who just HAD to buy the Directors cut of _Ultra Violet _last week."

Vega raised his voice, calling for Sofia and Sara could see Catherine making her way to the scene. Sofia sighed and turned away, leaving Sara to her work.

Author's Note: Just in case someone doesn't know: I do not have any legal claim to _The Devil Wears Prada_ in book or movie form. Nor do I own _Ultra Violet_...well, I have the DVD but have yet to make time to watch it.


	10. Chapter IX: Progress

_Chapter IX_

_Progress_

Much like Nadine Winters, whose body was still in one of his drawers, this victim had her throat cut and she'd been washed and redressed postmortem. Al Robbins processed the girl with a little extra care. Her blonde hair fanned out on his table and her blue eyes stared up at the ceiling. There were some differences, very important differences about this girl though. He documented them and thought for a moment. He knew that he was supposed to call Catherine as she was the CSI with the most seniority on the case. He also knew, however, that this little girl would tug at Catherine's heart strings. She probably already had. She looked just like Lindsey. So, steeling himself for a scathing attack later, he paged Sara Sidle.

* * *

Sara left the trace work with Hodges. There was more of that powder. She had told the tech that it was priority and had cut him off when he'd started to toot his own horn. She was tired, grumpy and Catherine was riding her at every turn, she did not need David Hodge's usual song and dance thrown in on top of everything else. 

When Robbins paged her, she sighed and finished off what must have been her thirteenth cup of coffee of that night. The walk back to the morgue was quiet, the techs and CSIs were all working in the warren of labs and layout rooms. The dim glow of monitors and the eerie ALS flashed across her face, casting strange shadows in the hall. Sara reached the morgue and looked around. Lying out on the center table was the girl that Greg was desperately trying to find in the LVPD's assorted databases. She looked very small and pale in the dim light.

Robbins came around the corner of the lab. "Sara." She gave him a small smile. "Hey Doc, what can you tell me?" He went over to the table, his ever present crutch making small scraping and tapping sounds as he went.

"The COD is the same as the Winters girl, she bled out from a long slash to the jugular. She was bathed and redressed post mortem." Sara nodded, "Is that all?" He shook his head. "No. I looked at her mouth, hoping to find some orthodontic scarring or other dental work. I didn't find any, but" He motioned her over and they looked into the girl's mouth. There was a film of white residue covering her back molars and throat. Sara wrinkled her nose, "What's that?" The ME looked at her, "I've got some on a slide, but I can tell you what it is right now, Ivory soap." Sara blinked, "That's more soap than what would get in there during a bath, even post mortem." He nodded, "There was also trace amounts in her lungs." Sara blinked again, "But the COD was the neck wound, right?"

He nodded and looked at her, "Sara did you ever use foul language as a child?"

The question struck Sara as odd. She had grown up in a less then perfect environment and profanities had been part of her every day life. She'd never cursed, though, because she had a very clear memory of her father beating her brother for uttering the word "fuck" just once. "No, not really, why?" He looked up at her, "When I was oh, I don't know, eleven or so, I cursed in front of my mother. Do you know what she did?" Sara shook her head. "Washed my mouth out with Ivory soap." Sara raised an eyebrow, "Really?" He nodded, "I never used that particular word in her presence again." Sara frowned and looked at the dead girl. "But there was no soap residue in the Winters girl." Robbins nodded, "If you'll help me turn her over, I'll show you something else." Sara nodded and together they turned the girl to her side.

The marks on her backside were sadly familiar to Sara. "Hand prints." Robbins nodded, "A good old fashioned spanking." Sara grabbed her camera and took photos of the bruised and battered bottom and they put the girl back. She took pictures of her mouth and then sighed, "He punished this girl." Albert Robbins nodded, "From the bruising and stiffening, I'd say these blows were delivered less then two hours before the TOD." Sara looked down at the girl one more time. She was gangly and her cheek bones were a little too prominent. Calluses on her feet spoke of too much time in ill fitting shoes and her hair was in desperate need of a trim. This girl hadn't led the upper-middle class life that Nadine Winters had. No, this girl had known poverty and probably hardship.

Greg finally found her in a 'Protect Your Kids' database that had been set up two or three years before. The picture was a few years old, but the finger prints matched perfectly. Their second victim was Molly Danielle Black.

* * *

Sofia Curtis and Sara Sidle approached the Black residence at eight am. The lights were on and the people inside were bustling around. Sofia knocked on the door and they waited. 

The woman who answered the door was rough around the edges to say the least. She was wearing a waitress's uniform that had seen better days and her peroxide-blonde hair was teased into a poof that had been popular in the eighties.

Sofia looked at her, "I'm Detective Curtis with the LVPD." The woman grunted, and began to yell, "BOYS!" She turned a tired eye back to them, "Which one of them are you looking for?" Sara rubbed the back of her neck, trying to figure out exactly what to say, "Ma'am, are you Amy Black?" The woman rolled her eyes, "That's what the name tag says, honey." Sofia sighed, "Ma'am, you have a daughter, Molly Black?" The woman did a double take. "What do you want with Molly? She's the good kid." Sofia's hand automatically rose to rub the tension out of her forehead. "Ma'am, I'm sorry to inform you, but your daughter was found last night." The woman scowled, "Found? What did she do and how much is it going to cost me to bail her out?" Sofia looked over at Sara and the brunette stepped closer. "Ma'am, there's no easy way to say this, but your daughter was found last night, murdered." Amy Black went pale under her makeup, and in the early desert morning she looked exactly like what she was, a tired, used up woman who'd left her glory days far behind her.

"Oh God, come inside."


	11. Chapter X: Rest

_Chapter X_

_Rest_

After taking statements and comforting a completely shocked family, both Sara and Sofia were exhausted beyond words. Both had been going nonstop since Nadine's body had been found. Sara called Greg and asked him to take her off the clock and Sofia called Vega and did the same. Sara's apartment was closer and when they got there, they managed to make it to the bed and get rid of their shoes before they both collapsed.

They were taking it slow, very slow, so sharing a bed was something novel. They were so tired, though; too tired to stop and contemplate the rather large step they were taking. No, they simply took it and went to bed. Sara stripped down to her tank top and undies and Sofia did the same and five minutes and one kiss after they'd arrived they fell asleep, snuggled together on Sara's queen sized bed.

* * *

Catherine, after getting Lindsey to school, went home. She knew she could call Wendy, but she didn't. Today she stood in the middle of her daughter's room and wondered if she would ever be able to comprehend the horrors of losing a child.

* * *

There was no rest for the righteous. As another day dawned, the search began again, the search for the perfect little girl.

* * *

Amy Black and Nadine Winters, surrounded by a new circle of supporters sat and watched the mid-day news.

"This is Maria Rymer reporting from the Sheriff's Press Conference." The redhead was coiffed and dressed in a sharp gray suit. "While there has been little or no comment given on the string of recent grisly murders, it is clear that Las Vegas is no longer safe."

The television went off, cutting the reporter's words off. "You don't need to watch these media vultures." The voice was both silky soft and as hard as steel, it was also the final authority and no one would dare challenge it. The gathered group of women nodded, listening to the other woman's words. They listened and obeyed because without her, none of them would be here now. "Come on, ladies, tea is ready."

They followed the woman, happily. If anyone of them thought the situation was strange, they did not comment. None of them would have survived without 'Never Forget'.

'Never Forget' had been formed to help parents who'd lost their children. It was therapeutic and supportive, it was what had kept most of them, and there were around thirty of them, from going insane.

Author's Note: Three more chapters. You guys are going to be rotten and impossible to deal with now aren't you? Ah, well, all good things come to an end and as I'm cutting too deeply into my buffer of chapters than is reallycomfortable, we'll be returning to my usual one chapter a night schedule. I did some math tonight and there are going to be about roughly 36 chapters, 38 if you count the prologue and epilogue. Hope everyone used the bathroom before we started on this twisted trip because I'm not stopping for anything or anyone.

Now on a plot related note: Whoo and two hoos for the return of my favorite non-central CSI charecter! Now give me a few chapters and I'll introduce a new face for everyone to 'ooh and aaw' over.


	12. Chapter XI: Reassignment

_Chapter XI_

_Reassigned_

Two days and two nights, almost every hour of them dedicated to the investigation, and the LVPD was no closer to finding the murderer. The press trailed their every move, like rabid dogs after a bone. They played clips of Sofia's 'No Comment' and the Sheriff's press conference in every news cast and the rumors were growing wilder and wilder. The speculation was driving the citizens of Vegas wild. Gun stores were doing booming business as was the security business.

Sara stared at the computer screen before her. Bastardized forms of Satanism, cults, old rituals of child sacrifice. Horrors of human kind that time had ebbed away at until they were fuel for bad science fiction films and nightmares. The more Sara read, the more she wanted to find the killer. She wanted to stop the wave of paranoid insanity before it completely took over Vegas.

* * *

Grissom sighed as he stared at the assignment board. There were two dead girls, but each night brought in more crime scenes to work, he couldn't have three CSIs working the same case. He knew that taking either Sara or Catherine off the case would cause fireworks in the labs. He also knew that taking Greg off the case would make the younger CSI angry, this case could be very important to his growing career. It was not a case of want or preference, though, but practicality. With two more 419s, three break ins and a hit and run, he needed CSIs.  
"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!" Catherine's outrage echoed down the hall. The woman paced the break room, coffee cup in her hand. "You're taking Greg and me off the case!" Grissom sighed, "Yes, Catherine, Nick and Warrick are closing their cases and are going to tackle two more. I need you on another case." Catherine let out a very vicious sounding growl. "I suppose you're letting _Sara_ stay on the case." Though he winced, Grissom nodded. "I am."

Sara, who had broke off her work for a cup of coffee and an update, leaned against the counter and watched the argument play out, silently hoping she wasn't about to be dragged into the middle of it. Grissom's calm voice continued, trying to soothe the savage beast that was Catherine's ambition. "The LVPD is taking Vega off the case too, Catherine. We just don't have the man power to keep going on this case with three CSIs and two detectives." Catherine mumbled a few choice words under her breathe, then looked up. "Fine, but if another body turns up..." Grissom nodded, "Then it is priority and you will be back on the case." He held up an assignment slip, "Now, a dead body at the Tropicana." She snatched the slip from his hand. "Fine." Catherine left the room with a toss of her red gold locks and a muttered curse.

* * *

Her heel clicks were the only sound that followed Catherine down the hall. She hated that Grissom had decided to throw her off the case. HER! She was the senior CSI, she was a supervisor. She was being looked over for Grissom's pet CSI.

The anger boiled and thrashed around in Catherine's gut like a thrashing sea during a hurricane. She had paid her dues. Since her career switch she had worked through night school, worked as a tech, worked her way from CSI I to Supervisor. She'd solved hundreds of cases. She wanted this case.  
Sara did not understand what the mothers were going through. Sara didn't have a daughter. Hell, Sara probably never came into contact with anyone under the age of twenty-one outside of work. Sara never saw anyone outside of work.

Catherine, on the other hand, had Lindsey. She lived life. She deserved this case.

Her anger continued to simmer as she rushed down the corridors. Through the glass walls, she saw her various coworkers, the techs that ran every aspect of every case that came through. Archie bent over his computer, Bobby test firing some pistol for Nick's case and Wendy. Wendy was running a test for someone.

Catherine slipped into the DNA lab quietly and came up behind the tech. Her hands slid around the woman's waist, "Don't move." Wendy froze in place, her hands midair, holding a dropper full of distilled water over a test strip.

Catherine leaned in, her mouth only a breathe's away from the other woman's ear. "Have I ever told you how sexy you look in that lab coat?" Wendy sucked in a breath. "No." Catherine grinned, "Well you are." Wendy tilted her head to the side, trying to get a glimpse of the older woman's face. "Catherine?" Catherine smiled and brushed her lips across Wendy's cheek and then caught the brunette's lips with her own. The kiss was as hot as a brush fire and just as uncontrolled. Wendy could feel, as she put the equipment on the table and turned in to Catherine's embrace, the tension in the other woman's body. Wendy's eyes fluttered shut and the only thought that her over heated mind could come up with was that Catherine's kiss tasted like anger.

When they parted, Wendy had to wipe Catherine's lipstick from her cheek. The other woman's shade was much darker then hers today.

Catherine smiled and patted Wendy's firm backside, "Thank you, I needed that."

* * *

Wendy watched as Catherine left the lab. When she turned the corner, Wendy went to her chair and all but collapsed. Her fingers danced across the lips that Catherine Willows had so recently assaulted. "Yeah." The beep of her computer caught her immediateattention, but the hot and bothered feeling lasted the rest of the night. 


	13. Chapter XII: Checking You Out

_Chapter XII_

_Checking You Out_

Emmaline Thompson handed the librarian her card and pushed the stack of books across the highly polished wood desk. The woman smiled at her, "Doing a report, Emmaline?" The young woman nodded, "Yeah. I came to the lecture and now my dad wants me to do a report on the Senate." The librarian stamped the due date on a slip and put in inside the top of the book. "Did you ask any good questions?"

Another voice answered. "Yes, yes she did." Emmaline turned and smiled. "Thanks." The adult smiled and patted her head. "So you're doing a report on the senate?" She nodded, "Yes, ma'am."  
The woman was dressed in a sharp suit. "Well, then, how about I give you a ride and you can take some first hand notes."

The young girl beamed. "Oh wow, really!" The woman nodded. "As long as I can get your vote." Emmaline rolled her eyes, "I'm only sixteen." The older woman laughed, "Ah well, at least I can have my good deed for the day." Emmaline gathered the books under her arm. "Wow, thanks." She turned to leave, but the librarian stopped her. "Your card, Emma." The woman took it for her. "Emmaline's hands are full, I've got it." The librarian smiled, "You two have a good day."

* * *

Alexander Thompson scowled. Robert and Janine were at their respective places at the dinner table, and his wife was in the kitchen, but their oldest daughter, Emmaline was missing.

"Where is Emmaline?" Frances, belly bulging with another child, put the pot roast on the table. "She must still be in her room." She turned and waddled down the hallway. Emmaline's room was the last one on the right. She opened the door, but the small room was empty. Frowning, she looked in the backyard. It too was empty.

The Thompson family lived on the outskirts of Northern Las Vegas and their nearest neighbor was a quarter of a mile away. They were God Fearing and just a little bit paranoid. Alexander ruled the small home with an iron will and the Bible. He worked as an accountant. His wife did not work, she kept the house and over saw the children's schooling. Her outings consisted of the grocery store and church.

Fear rose up in France's throat, it strangled her. She went back to the dining room, her hands shaking. "Alex..." Her husband looked up, no one called him by the shortened form of his name, not since childhood. The whispery way his wife had said it though, told him that something was wrong. He stood, "Frannie?" She shook her head and he rushed over to her. He caught his wife just before she hit the floor in a dead faint.

* * *

Catherine had worked case after case all night long. Her mind, though, kept returning to the two missing girls. So when she walked into the Desert Palms ER for a possible domestic abuse, she was less then thrilled.

The doctor, a young ER resident by the name of Jason Peel, took her back to the room. "Mrs. Willows" His voice was a slow, almost syrupy quality to it that spoke of his Southern roots. "I've seen a lot of things here. This, though, takes me right back home. Baptists are usually good people...there are some though, who take things pretty far. The cliché barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen types. The Thompsons came in, the husband is controlling. The kids were scared spitless of him...I've seen this kind of abuse before. God says honor thy father and obey thy husband and it gives them a ticket to abuse the hell outta them." They stopped right outside of the examination room's doors. "I'll let you do your thing, ma'am...I've got an orderly just outside the door in case things get...crazy." He opened the door for her and she went in.

The woman, Frances Thompson, was very pregnant. Catherine guesstimated that she was in her seventh or eighth month. She was also in a dress, instead of a hospital gown. Her husband was also there. She sighed, she'd obviously beaten the social worker here, and that made her job extra difficult.

"Hello, I'm Catherine Willows." The husband glared at her. "I do not appreciate these wild speculations, Ms. Willows. My daughter is missing and my wife fainted and the Godless cretins think I beat her and that somehow takes precedence." The further along he went, the louder he got and the louder he got the redder his face became. The orderly made a discreet entrance and Catherine was instantly grateful that the six foot tall man was there.

Catherine looked at the wife, she was pale and Catherine could see the heart monitor behind her spiking crazily as the numbers on her blood pressure jumped. Memories of her own pregnancy flashed in her mind and Catherine knew she had to get the husband calmed down. "Okay, sir, one thing at a time. If you have a picture of your daughter I can put out an ABP and an AMBER alert." She could do no such thing, but if it calmed him down, she would have told him Elvis was alive and she was the Queen of England. The man snarled at her, "Of course I have a picture, she IS my daughter." He opened his wallet and showed her a family portrait. Himself, his wife, a son, and two daughters. "Emmaline is the girl on the left." Catherine made note that all the mother and daughter were wearing skirts and had long hair. More importantly, though, Emmaline had long blonde hair and her eyes were blue.

Catherine's heart beat picked up and she could feel the sensation of adrenaline pounding through her veins.

Author's Note: Early Post! I actually have energy, enough to write, but not enough to oh, I don't know, get up and put a DVD in the player. I don't know if it was the energy drink or the M&Ms, but if I get enough written tonight, I'll post up a second chapter on my usual schedule too. I also have tommorowoff (hooray) and will be, between cleaning and laundry, working on further chapters. Basically, I'm hoping to get through the first drafts of everything finished this weekend. It's one of those deals where everything is either handwritten and just waiting to be typed or plotted out in my head and needs to be typed. So...lots of typing in my immediate future.

While I'm yakking, thanks go out to: HoneyLynx86, my wonderful beta reader, cause she gets to see all the God-awful confusing first draft mistakes and never complains, even when I get snarky about things. Icklebitodd, whose reviews keep me going even when I want to shove my keyboard down the trash chute... and to everyone else who's reviewed and even to those who have not, thanks and I hope you're enjoying the story. ((Kay, that was definitly the M&Ms talking))


	14. Chapter XIII: Profesional Courtesy

_Chapter XIII_

_Professional Courtesy_

Sofia arrived at the Thompson residence at midnight, about an hour after the call had come in. Their daughter, a blue eyed blonde was missing. It could be completely unrelated. She could have run away or anything. Sofia knew though, deep in her gut, that this had to be another one of _his_ victims. The likeness were far too close for it to be otherwise.

She was not the only one to have made the connection. Like sick vultures, the press was already there. The uniforms had to physically keep them behind the crime scene tape. As soon as she got out of her car, they turned on her. An annoyingly familiar redhead got to her first. She shoved a microphone at Sofia. "Detective Curtis, is this another victim of the Doll Collector?" Shock actually stopped Sofia dead in her tracks. "The WHAT?" It was the first time they'd gotten something other then "No Comment" and the media moved in on it. The redhead, Rymer, continued, "Experts hypothesize that a cult group is attacking little girls and leaving them positioned like life size dolls. That perhaps they are offerings to the Devil." Sofia hadn't heard any of these "Experts" theories, and doubted that Internet geeks on their computers and old palm readers could be considered experts. "Of all the ridiculous...no, no comment." She shouldered her way past a camera man and his camera's microphone picked up her muttered obseneties.

Two things would never cease to amaze her: the horrible acts one human could inflict on another, and how low the press would go. She'd found that she'd had less and less patience for the media since **Hard Crime** had turned it's cameras on her case.

When she finally reached the door, she had to stop herself from slamming it behind her. Two children were sitting on the couch, totally silent. A boy and a girl. The boy was dressed in stiff khakis and a white dress shirt and the girl was in a floor length skirt and blouse. Her long blonde tresses were tied back with a ribbon. There was also a very pale man who was dressed to match the boy. The father she was sure. Sofia looked around. She didn't see Sara anywhere.  
Catherine came back from the girl's bedroom and saw Sofia standing in the living room. "Ah, detective, I'm glad you're here."

Sofia raised a brow. "Catherine." The CSI looked at her, "Sofia." A scowl worked across her face. "Where's Sara?"

* * *

Sara was at home. Grissom had sent her packing. Apparently if he found you asleep in the break room more then once, twice or erm, a few times in the same week you were "over doing it". So she was at home, living it up. She had four different kinds of Lean Cuisine in the freezer and there was a **Stargate** **SG1** marathon on. Since the brave and beautiful Sam Carter was on commercial, Sara flipped over to Channel 5 to see if the weather was going to be merely hot or hot as hell in the morning. The redhead was on again, Maria Something or Other. She was about to turn it, because she really didn't need to hear any more crazy theories about the media dubbed 'Doll Collector'. Something paused her hand, though. That something was Catherine Willows in all of her glory. "The Crime Lab has no comment at the moment." The banner at the bottom of the screen read 'Doll Collector Takes a Third Victim' Sara indulged her rage and threw the remote against the wall. "SON OF A BITCH!"

Sara slammed the door to her Tahoe and ducked under the crime scene tape. She stalked past the uniforms and opened the door. Inside there were uniforms and family members. She caught a glimpse of Sofia out of the corner of her eye, but she did not stop. She went straight back to the hallway and followed her ears. The little girl's room did indeed have Catherine in it. Sara shut the door behind her. The soft click caught Catherine's attention and she turned around. What she saw was five feet, eight inches of a very angry brunette.

She met the angry brown eyes with her own cool blue. "Sara."

Sara Sidle said nothing at first. She clenched her fists, the knuckles on the hand that held her kit turned bone white and the nails of the other hand dug into her flesh. "Catherine. I want you to pretend for five seconds that you know the meaning of ethics and ask you why you didn't have the courtesy of calling me, the LEAD CSI on this case. I'm not asking for much, just for some fucking professional courtesy." Sara's entire being vibrated with anger, but her voice was even and controlled. It was her eyes, though, almost black, that conveyed her true rage.

Catherine looked at her. "I caught a lead and I ran with it. Get over yourself, Sara." Catherine moved towards the door, but Sara didn't budge. "I'd appreciate it if next time when you get a lead on _my_ case, you call me. Understand?" They stood almost nose to nose, "I am the senior CSI here, Sidle, do you understand that?" Sara didn't flinch, "You wouldn't do this to Warrick or Nick, don't do it to me." Catherine didn't flinch either. "What are you going to go crying to Grissom?" Sara shook her head. "No. I trust this won't happen again. Now update me, please."  
Sofia watched Sara walk back down the hall and she intercepted her before she reached the den. If there was anything they didn't need it was a pissed off Sara Sidle meeting the male chauvinist and to be blunt, Bible Thumping Alexander Thompson talking to her.

She took her and lead her by the arm to the deserted back yard. She could feel the tension coming off of Sara. She pulled her around to look in her eyes. She could actually see the anger sparking in the woman's chocolate brown eyes. "Calm down, Baby." Sara shook her head. "It's just...God, why can't Catherine..." Sofia put her finger against Sara's lips, silencing her words. "Don't you worry about Willows anymore. She's not important." Sara sighed, but nodded her head. Sofia smiled, "Good. Now, we'll go back in and I'll introduce you to the parents, but prepare yourself, they're not exactly...nice." Sara slid her arms around Sofia's waist. "Thank you." Sofia pressed a kiss to the brunette's forehead, "Don't mention it." Sara sagged against her for a minute, then stood up straight. Her shoulders went stiff and she put on her mask, icy cold and stoic. Sofia watched her girlfriend walk back into house. The detective heaved a sigh and wished on one twinkling sigh that the rest of the investigation went better.

Author's Note: Okay, for those of you who are less familiar with my assorted works... I like Catherine Willows, I honestly do. She's a complex character that challenges me as a viewer and a writer. She's also a bitch. Sorry, but I speak the truth and even you die-hard Cath fans know that she has her moments. So yes, right now Catherine is really showing her 'bad' streak. I will tell you guys that there is a method to my madness and all of this has a point. Honestly, what's a sudden life changing epiphany worth if you haven't done anything that you can truly regret?

Now on another note... I have nothing against religion and neither am I attacking it. The use of the term "Bible Thumping" is derogatory, however, and I know that. I would like to say that this remark is not pointed at all Christians or all Baptists, even. Just to people who use religion as some kind of scare tactic to keep people behaving like they think they should. My, this isn't working out like I thought it would. Ah, well, no offense meant to anyone. I am Southern, though, and felt I needed to explain this and further references to religion in this story. It's just good form, proper manners that have been pounded into my head since birth.

That's all the yaking for this chapter. Please send the reviews along.


	15. Chapter XIV: Windows of the Soul

_Chapter XIV_

_Windows of the Soul_

Two true blue windows of the soul. One could see eternity in her ocean blue eyes. Only hours before those eyes had been alive, now they were still and vacant. Before they had shown a pure soul, sweet and unjaded by the world. That same innocence and fear had been what had ruined her too. She'd been as skittish as a mouse. Not plucky enough. Too many years under her father had warped her mind. She'd called to God for help. As if God was listening. Then again, sixteen was much too old. Sixteen just wasn't the right age.

Now, after her bath, Emmaline was still and quiet. The new dress and shiny shoes were waiting on the bedside table, still in plastic. Another girl, another disappointment. If the God that she called to was really so powerful and loving, why couldn't he send her a daughter?  
A tall figure garbed in a black trench coat laid a white body down on the steps of the Las Vegas Library. It was dark and the desert air held a chill. There was also a blinking red light in the night, a video camera. If the eyes were the window to the soul, this soul was frightening and dark, filled with a madness and an even scarier passion and lies. Her eyes were filled with lies.  
Years of searching and planning, of failures and of successes. She was on the cusp of greatness. She only needed one thing to make her life complete and perfect. A daughter. A pretty little girl, cast in her image. To continue her work after she was gone, to live up to the family name, to continue the legacy that she was working so hard to forge.

* * *

Jenna Portman yawned as she put her car, which was older then she was, in park. She had to re-shelve last night's books before they opened up. She loved to read, and loved the library, but early morning shifts were killing her. Of course, they probably wouldn't be if she got in bed before 1 am. She rounded the building, sipping her coffee and mentally calculating how much she would need to pay off her junker of her car when she saw it. She choked on the scalding coffee and spat it on the ground. Her big brown eyes went wide with both shock and horror. There was a dead little girl laying right there on the steps in the small plaza.  
Sofia's pager went off and roused her from her daze. She blinked and stretched at her desk. She picked up the phone and made the call. A moment later, she put the handset back in the cradle and sighed. Emmaline had been found.

* * *

Sofia's blue eyes were weary and rimmed by dark circles. Beyond the fatigue, though, there was both strength and softness and a drive to solve the case.

A hand descended down on her shoulder. Jim stood above her. She smiled, "Hey."  
Captain Jim Brass recognized the signs of a hard case. In the early morning light through the slightly dusty precinct windows, he could see all of the signs, flashing brighter then the Strip, on Sofia's face. "Get a break?" Sofia shook her head, "No. Well, the girl's body has been found, dead just like the others." She rested her head in her hands. "Theres nothing there, Jim. I just keep hitting brick walls every time I turn around. I keep having to tell grieving mothers that their little girls aren't coming home. I don't know how much more I can take without going insane."  
Jim's hound dog brown eyes were filled with understanding and empathy. "Take it one day at a time, Curtis, one day at a time. Besides, when it's all said and done, whether you close the case or not, you've still got Sara." He walked away, a little twinkle in his eyes. He didn't have to see Sofia's jaw gape to chuckle to himself.

Author's Note: This chapter would have been up earlier, but a certain site, which will remain unamed, felt that it did not need to upload the chapter. This site deserves a kick in the head...er server...whatever.


	16. Chapter XV: Where There's A Willows

_Chapter XV_

_Where There's A Willows_

Catherine lay back in the driver's seat of her car. She was waiting for the final bell of the school day to ring. After night after night of wading through the oceans of death and despair, she wanted a little time with her daughter. Her arm was thrown over her face, hiding her eyes from the intense afternoon sun. Hers was not the only car along the school's curb. There were innumerable cars, SUVs and minivans driven by anxious parents. The 'Doll Collector' had rattled many parents' cages.  
In the distance she heard the shrill bell ring and almost immediately after, the loud roar of middle schoolers followed.

* * *

Lindsey Willows hefted her backpack and walked between her friends, Tricia and Jessica. They were dressed in matching black tee-shirts. Tricia grinned, "So, L, your mom give you permission to go to the concert tonight?" Jessica jumped in, "She has to. I mean you can't miss it, it's like the concert of the year!" Lindsey smiled, "She has to work tonight. I'm sure I can figure out some way to get there." The two other girls grinned and high-fived. "This is going to be totally cool!" Lindsey grinned and they left the school building behind them. Lindsey went on her tiptoes to see if her mom was there. Yes, there was their SUV. "Damn. My Mom's here." She shrugged one shoulder, "I'll see you guys later tonight." The other two girls waved and headed towards the big yellow school buses. 

Lindsey frowned at the car as she reached it. She wished her mother would let her ride the bus. It just was not cool to have to ride with your mom every day. She opened the back door to the SUV and threw her bag in. Her mother, who was half asleep in the driver's seat, uncovered her eyes. "Hey, Linds." Lindsey closed the back door and opened up the front. "Hey." She slid into the relatively cool interior of the car and reached for her seatbelt.

* * *

Catherine squinted at her daughter. The afternoon light came through the tinted window and Lindsey had a reflective halo around her. Catherine, though, knew very well that her daughter was no angel, she had too much of her mother in her for that. "How was school?" She returned her seat to the upright position so she could drive as Lindsey outlined her day. Predictably, her daughter left out all academic pursuits, but Catherine learned that Adam Haney dumped Felicia Primstone for Gillian West, who was, apparently, a renowned boyfriend stealer. Michael Dowes and Freddie Peterson had been caught kissing under the bleachers out by the football field which was, according to Lindsey, okay by her. But the football team was not as tolerant and the two boys had been forced to run. The gym teachers had been forced to physically pull the players off of the two young men.  
Her mother's frown did not stop Lindsey. She knew that if she could lull her mother into a sense of security, and boredom, it would be easier to get permission to go to the concert. 

She tossed her blonde locks, an unconscious move that she had picked up from her mother, and continued. "Then Angela Hernandez was caught roller blading in the quad and was sent to the principal's office. She's actually really good, but Mr. Rossi was not impressed by her practicing her grinding techniques on school property and now she has to repaint all the rails she used...which is a bummer because the hottest concert of the year is tonight and Angela is a huge fan and she already coughed up the fifty bucks for the ticket."

* * *

Catherine hit her turn signal and went around a slower drive. Her daughter was good, very good. Catherine, though, was better. "And when is this concert?" She actually smiled when Lindsey blew out an exasperated breathe. "Tonight. The girls and I got the tickets already." Catherine's hands tightened on the steering wheel. They had not discussed any concert. "Where did you get money for a ticket, Linds?" Her daughter looked out the window, the reflection of her blue eyes in the tint was the picture of innocence. "Sam gave me some a while back." 

Catherine muttered a curse under her breathe. She had told Sam more than once that she did not want him giving Lindsey anything, including money, without talking to her first. She knew all too well how generous he could be. She also knew that he didn't understand boundaries well. She cringed at the memory of being allowed to dance in his clubs. No, she was not going to let him spoil Lindsey. She knew where that path went and she didn't want her daughter following her footsteps down it.  
"You didn't even ask me, Lindsey." The girl turned to face her mother, blue eyes met blue. "It's just a concert." Catherine sighed, "Well what band is it?"

Lindsey rolled her eyes. How could her mother be so incredibly dumb? "You're kidding." Her mom shook her head. "No, Lindsey. Who is it?"

Catherine wracked her brain, trying to remember a single band name. "Is this that Evan Six thing?" Her daughter stared at her blankly for a minute, "You mean Evanescence?" She shrugged, "Right. So it is them?" Lindsey chuckled, "Uh no. Broken Innocence, Mom. You know, they just put out their new album, _White Coffin_." Catherine narrowed her eyes, "No, what kind of music is this, Lindsey?" Lindsey once again rolled her eyes, which was her most used facial expression. "Fine, I'll let you listen." She unbuckled and twisted around in her seat. Catherine automatically put both her hands on the wheel. "Lindsey Willows, you sit in your seat and buckle up." Lindsey came back around, backpack in hand. "Chill." She buckled back up and started to rummage in the very messy backpack. She pulled out a personal CD player, one she wasn't supposed to have at school with her, and removed the obviously burnt CD. She popped the CD in and a moment later, Catherine's ears were assaulted with the furious rifts of guitars and the thunderous roar of drums. Catherine could not make out most of the words, being all but screams, but she was immediately sure, as they pulled into the driveway of the Willows Abode, that she did not want Lindsey at the concert. She turned off the radio and the CD popped back out.

Before Lindsey could get her CD, her mother took it. "Where did you get this music?" Mentally, Lindsey cursed. "Jessica burnt it off for me. There's nothing wrong with it." Her mother's face went hard and her mouth set in a scowl. It was, Lindsey thought, her mother's 'Bitch Face'. "This music is violent, Lindsey. Besides you know the rule, I'm supposed to listen to the CD before you buy it." Lindsey crossed her arms. "I didn't buy it." Then her mother dropped the bombshell, "You are not going to this concert, no way." For a moment, Lindsey couldn't speak. The words all jumbled up in her mind and her throat was too tight to let them tumble out. "I..You...But..." Her mother only stared at her. "That's my final word, Lindsey." She clenched her fists, "YOU ARE RUINING MY LIFE!" She opened the car door and jumped out. "THIS IS THE SOCIAL EVENT OF THE YEAR AND YOU WON'T LET ME GO!" Lindsey grabbed her bag and stomped up the drive and to the door. She let herself in and slammed the door behind her. Her screamed, "I HATE YOU" reached Catherine's ears before the door shut.

Catherine's heart hurt at Lindsey's words. What kept her rooted to her seat, though, was Lindsey's shirt. The black shirt was new and Catherine had never seen it before. The picture on back... it was of a fair haired girl with a white dress standing in front of a white coffin. Catherine's mind raced. Was it a coincidence? Broken Innocence...it was too perfect.


	17. Chapter XVI: Lab and Field

_Chapter XVI_

_Lab and Field_

Sara knew there was something she was missing. She could all but taste it. She had attacked the facts from all sides, trying to find that little weakness that would allow her to see inside the mystery. She had run the specifics through VICAP and had, of course, gotten about a thousand hits returned. Cult-esque killings, pseudo witches, pedophile killings, from New York to Hawaii, there was no pattern or anything anywhere strong enough to support a theory. Pictures were strewn out in front of her. The three girls looked alike. Blonde hair and blue eyes, that was obvious. An arm-chair _Law and Order_ obsessed fan would point that out. Sara pushed her brown hair back behind her ears and tried to push her mind further. The three girls had, outside of looks, very little in common.

Nadine was a solid B student who was a star soccer forward and dabbled in poetry and drama. Her school was one of the better middle schools in the public district and she was an only child.

Molly had been a lack-luster student who, apparently, had no after school activities. She'd come from a large low class family. Her school had been a haven for gang recruiting and drugs.

The strangest one was Emmaline. She had been home schooled, sheltered from the outside world. The girl never wore pants or shorts and had never missed a day of church. Her family had been hard nose Baptists. The father had hammered the virtues of the Godly into their heads and frightened them with the fiery pits of hell. She had been last seen at the library, where she'd been found.  
Sara frowned and decided to look at that angle. Thirty minutes later, she found herself at another dead end. The other two girls had never been to that branch of the Las Vegas Library. Sara put her face in her hands and let the layout table support most of her weight. The stool she sat on squeaked, but other then that the small room's only sounds were Sara's deep breathes and the hum the florescent lights.

That was how Warrick found her. He thought she might have been asleep but when his hands was inches from her shoulder, she spoke. "Don't." He smiled and pulled up a stool. "I thought you were asleep." She shook her head, "No, just..." Warrick picked up the photograph of Nadine Winters. "Brooding?" Sara straightened her spine and turned to look at the other CSI. "Something like that." Sara paged through the thin file of information. "There has to be something else, 'Rick, something that connects them." He shrugged, "Maybe not. It could just be that they are all blondes, Sara. Every killer doesn't have some dark and twisted plot. Like Hannibal Lector said, 'Simplicity'." Sara narrowed her dark eyes at the man. "Hannibal also ate people, Warrick." He smiled, "Yeah, but Hannibal escaped capture and in the book, he got the girl." Sara shuddered. "Okay, now that is just creepy. You. Back to the casinos, no more reading." Warrick chuckled, "Turn in my library card for a slot card?" Sara grinned, "Yes. Now don't you have a homicide of your own to solve?" Warrick stood. "Nah. Me and Nick solved that hours ago, now we're working this B&E. Easy stuff. Greg would be busting his butt on it, but Catherine shanghaied him earlier tonight. Know anything about that?"  
Sara shrugged, "It's Catherine." Warrick grinned, "Yeah." He put a hand on Sara's shoulder. "Don't stress too hard over this, Sara, you'll figure it out. You always do." He looked at the pictures again. "Two schools and a library. Student hang outs, maybe it's a secretary or I don't know, a traveling author. Have you checked staff rosters and floating substitute teachers yet?" Sara shook her head. "Nope, but now that you mention it, I'm going to pull up the county's list of approved substitutes, see if the same guy did both schools in the last few weeks." Warrick smiled, "Good idea. Plus, you should call Catherine, see what she's chasing down. You never know about Cath, she might already have a suspect." Sara nodded.

* * *

Even if Sara had called Catherine, which she didn't, the woman would not have answered. Not because of their problems, but because she couldn't have heard her cell phone ringing if it was right up against her ear. Catherine was making her way towards the stage at the incredibly crowded Broken Innocence Concert. Greg, who was in his element, made his way through the black clad, tattooed and pierced crowd with ease and familiarity. The warm-up band, Delusions of Grandeur, was screaming about not being understood...or sex, Catherine wasn't actually sure. They made their way forward until they hit a wall. A bouncer with more piercings than Catherine had fingers on both hands. The silver-studded giant smiled and in a booming voice, welcomed Greg. "Yo, Greggo. Nice to see you." Greg, who had to crane his head back slightly to look the man in the eye, shook his head. "Not here for the show, Randall," He flashed his badge. "LVPD business." Randall frowned, "Let's get you backstage."

The backstage area was a maze of trunks, makeshift ply-wood tables and cords. Catherine's nose wrinkled at the smell, rubber and sweat.

The club's main dressing room had a handwritten sign slapped on it. Randall knocked on the door. "There ya go." They entered the room. Catherine wasn't sure what to expect, but the four men in faded jeans playing X Box was not it.  
One of them looked up. "Yeah?" She looked at each face. "I'm Catherine Willows and this is Greg Sanders from the Las Vegas Crime Lab." One of the men, a blonde, stood up. "I'm Jake Toliver, vocals and front man, what can I do for you two?"

Five minutes later, Jake Toliver felt physically sick. "You think someone killed these girls because of our music?" Catherine raised a brow. "Well, isn't the image on your CD and promotional material of a little girl in a white dress in a coffin?" Catherine had the CD case in question in her hand. Jake took it and stared at it for a moment. "That's my daughter. I promised she could be on the cover of this one, Quinn's son, Daniel, was on our last one, Prodigal Son and I promised Veronica that she could be on this one." Catherine looked at the man, slightly shocked. "Our music, Ms. Willows, is about releasing anger and negative feelings in a positive way, it's an outlet. Our fans know that. We've never supported or encouraged violence. Ever." Each of the band's members had come to stand behind the man. A tall Latino man with a scorpion tattooed on his gleaming bald head looked at one of the pictures Catherine had brought. "Madre de Dios, what can we do to help?" Catherine sighed, "Your fans, have any of them ever seemed...extreme or particularly obsessive?"

By the time Catherine had run out of questions, it was time for the concert to start and a very subdued band left the dressing room. Catherine had, during her marriage with Eddie, met many musicians and singers. The guys of Broken Innocence were, despite their appearance, good people. The kind she wished Eddie would have been around more.

She and Greg made their way back through the crowd, who were now jumping and shouting along to the words of the band's first song,

"_Love will be the death of you_

_While entangled in your world of two_

_She will reveal her true face_

_And leave you in cold disgrace"_

The crash of cymbals and the scream of the guitar vibrated the fillings in Catherine's teeth. Greg was being Greg. His head was bobbing to the music and Catherine would swear that he was singing along.

"_Her perfect looks and reputation_

_Have left your fragile life in devastation_

_Alone and broken hearted_

_You ponder how it started"_

The sea of bodies was huge. It was hot, sticky and the mass of humanity was constantly moving. Catherine wondered just how much longer it would take until they reached the exit.

"_Twist and turn in your lonely bed_

_Voices screaming in your head_

_In the eye of the midnight storm_

_Burning angels come to warn_

_Of how tainted tears cloud your eyes_

_As you give your final goodbyes"_

The band launched into the fast and furious refrain and the crowd surged harder. Bodies bumped into her. One of them was at least six feet tall and two hundred pounds. He knocked her into a group of kids. One of them, a small blonde with bright green streaks in her hair, whipped around. "HEY WATCH I...MOM!"

Catherine's blue eyes went wide. There was her baby girl in a black halter top that showed more skin then it covered and skin tight black jeans. Her big blue eyes were surrounded by thick black eyeliner and her hair was streaked. "LINDSEY!" She grabbed her fourteen year old daughter's arm and pulled her along. Fury choked her words down as they shoved their way back towards the exit.

When they finally escaped the maze of bodies, she turned to stare at her daughter. "I can't believe you came to this concert after I specifically told you 'no'." Lindsey crossed her arms over her chest and squared her chin, "There was nothing wrong with that concert. I was HAVING A GOOD TIME!" Catherine glared at her as they marched to the Department issue Denali. "Well, I'm glad you were, because you are now grounded!" Greg, head down, eased around them and got into the driver's seat.

The entire drive back to the lab consisted of Catherine demanding an explanation and Lindsey giving it. In a somewhat sullen voice, the young girl told her mother how she had fooled her grandmother and had hitched a ride with friends to the concert. The more Catherine heard, the madder she got. The madder Catherine got, the more Greg felt for Lindsey. It had only been a handful of years ago since he'd been sneaking out to concerts himself.

* * *

With nothing else to do with her, Lindsey was banished to the break room until Lily could come and retrieve her. Catherine stormed off to do something, though Greg was not brave enough to find out what.

Lindsey poked around in the refrigerator. From her previous visits to her mother's workplace, she knew that there had to be soda somewhere. After rummaging a bit, she found a Diet Berries and Creme Dr. Pepper. Not her favorite, but she would have to make do. The bottle was half finished when someone, she didn't know who came in. She watched him from one of the couches. The man in the lab coat, he wasn't a CSI, started looking around in the fridge. "Where is it? Dang it. You'd think that since I put my name on it, people would leave it alone!" The man's complaints were stradaling the line between neurotic and whiny.

Lindsey looked down at her bottle and sure enough, on the label was the name DAVID HODGES in black sharpie. She quickly shoved the bottle between the cushions and put on her most innocent face. The bald man finally sighed and threw up his hands. He left the room without acknowledging her presence.

The next person through was a woman, a brunette in a lab coat. She too, went straight to the refrigerator. "Damn, Hodges must have already gotten his drink." She straightened up and half way through a gulp of water, she choked. Wendy Simms wiped her mouth. "Oh, hey there, Lindsey."

Lindsey had to roll her eyes. "Hey." The woman left quickly, and Lindsey sighed. Much like her mother, none of the lab people had time for her.

After about thirty minutes, another person came in. Lindsey vaguely remembered the face, but it was the name that she was most familiar with. "Hey Sara." The brunette turned and smiled, "Hey Linds, nice hair." Lindsey grinned. Her mother ranted about Sara almost as much as she did Lindsey herself. That kind of made her and Sara friends. Sara poured herself some coffee and sat on the chair beside the couch Lindsey was on.

* * *

Sara was surprised, to say the least, to find Lindsey in the break room. She took it in stride though. A grin worked it's way across her face when she noticed the top part of a bottle poking out of the couch cushions. "So you took Hodge's drink, huh?" Lindsey blushed and pulled the mostly empty bottle out into the open. "The bald guy? Yeah." Sara chuckled. "Wendy and Archie are going to be jealous. They usually try to get it." Lindsey nodded, "Wendy is the brunette, right?" Sara nodded.

Lindsey took another sip, "I thought so. You know, I think she's sleeping with my Mom." Sara felt the coffee go down the wrong pipe and she coughed and sputtered and gasped for air. Lindsey didn't pull the punches one bit. She was just like Catherine in that respect. "I...uh..." Lindsey smirked, "You are the second person I've caused to choke tonight."

Sara nodded, and was incredibly relieved when her pager went off. "I've got to go, Linds, Nick and Warrick keep a PS2 there under the TV...eh, yeah. Bye."

* * *

Lindsey watched the CSI leave. She wondered why her mom hated Sara so much, she was nice...and very fun to be around. Plus, she'd liked the streaks she'd put in her hair. Anyway, she was much better looking then Wendy.

Author's Note: The band names Delusions of Grandeur and Broken Innocence are used fictionally. I am not affiliated with any bands or other groups that go by these names and any similarities are coincidental.

The song lyrics used in this chapter belong to...well, I suppose they belong to me. The song lyrics are actually lines from a poem. _Love_, the poem, was published on a local level in my senior year of high school.

Wow...I used something that I can't be sued over. This is a new and interesting feeling.


	18. Chapter XVII: Steps

_Chapter XVII_

_One Small Step Forward_

_Two Very Big Steps Back_

The library's security system had been installed in the mid eighties and had not been updated since. Sara squinted at the computer screen as Archie ran through the footage one more time. The time and date stamp put the footage at three pm of January, the third. The images captured, though, were definitely of the night in question. Through the shadows of the night and the snow of the aged equipment, she and Archie watched the killer pull the SUV up to the very edge of the driveway. He struggled with the body, but eventually placed Emmaline's body in the plaza. He leaned down and placed the body at the foot of the steps. Then he bent over and placed a kiss on the girl's cold forehead. Then he left. The camera didn't catch his face. Sara wanted to scream, 'Turn around!' but she didn't. She watched the body language and the way the 'Doll Collector' walked. Something was off. She frowned and looked at Archie. "Run it again, Archie, from where he put her down to the end." The Asian tech nodded and with a few rapid clicks of his mouse, the video started to replay.

* * *

Archie had spent almost his entire professional life watching surveillance tapes. He'd also spent numerous hours watching the CSIs watch the tapes. He could tell when they were stumped, when they had something or when they saw something that broke the case wide open. The look on the lovely Sara Sidle's face, though, was none of the above. Her brows were furrowed in concentration. A line cut down her forehead, right above her nose, signaling that she was in deep thought. The lab rats who knew her well called that particular line the 'Sidle Fault' because you never wanted to be on her bad side when it showed up on her face. They got to the end of the tape and she scowled, "Again, please."

Sara watched the killer move. She scrutinized every motion, every aspect of every movement. When the tape came to an end the third time, she was sure. There was something in that stride, a certain aura to it. The mantle of power and authority came out in the stride. This man had power and he wielded it with almost a cocky grace. It sort of reminded her of Sofia's delicious swagger. That was when the penny dropped. The connection was made in her mind. It tore through her synapses, lighting a fire of thoughts and theories. They were not looking for a cult or even a man.

The Doll Collector was a woman.

* * *

Kirstin and Elise Holloway started their morning the same way they started every morning. It was a Tuesday and like all children, they had to go to school. At least that was what Lara was yelling at them. The house keeper aside, two alarm clocks were buzzing and the early morning rays of the desert sun were peeking through windows. It was, unfortunately, time to get up.

Choices about clothing were effectively taken out of the girls' hands. Two identical school uniforms had been laid out for them.

About thirty minutes after Lara's first wake up call they went downstairs. The girls were identical, from the tips of their highly polished blue pumps to the blue headbands in their hair. The only identifying (try using 'distinguishing' or 'way to tell them apart') feature was the embroidered letters on their uniform blazers, an E for Elise and a K for Kirstin.

As physically alike as they were, the two girls were just that, two people. Two different people who just happened to share DNA. They were the highly privileged daughters of Tony and Moira Holloway and they lived in a gated community in the most affluent part of Henderson.

Joseph, their driver, got them into the car and they were whisked away to their school, The Warren Walker Academy.

Kirstin flipped through her blue science notebook. "Your hand writing sucks." Her twin only shrugged, "You should pay attention instead of doodling."

Kirstin would have rolled her eyes, but her sister spoke the truth. Math and science bored her, so her notes for those classes usually consisted of drawings and not equations.

Not that she was about to concede victory to her sister. "You're just jealous." Elise rolled her baby blue eyes and flipped open her cell phone, a series of pings and musical tones told her that she already had messages. "It doesn't matter, though, we're not going to third or fourth block today. That speaker is coming today. The chick who's running for Senate." Kirstin took off her headband and twirled it around her finger. "Oh yeah, sounds boring. Any way we can get out of it?" Both girls thought for a moment, going over schemes in their heads. Having a double had come in handy more then one time in their short lives. After a moment, both girls sighed. The administration had long ago caught on to their tricks and they would most likely have to sit through the entire speech and pretend to take notes. Well, Elise would actually take notes because there was most likely going to be some kind of quiz afterwards. Kirstin would probably waste time drawing.

* * *

It was, Kirstin realized, not boring at all. Especially since the speaker had started out with this huge presentation on the projection screen. She had never really thought about politics much. Her father dabbled in them, but for the most part, politics were not a part of her thirteen year old world. When Q and A time came, Elise elbowed her ever so slightly and they looked at each other, having a conversation with only their eyes. Without a spoken word, they both raised their hands.

* * *

They walked through the quad, shoulder to shoulder. Kirstin and Elise both had a tray of food and a bottle of designer mineral water for lunch. They passed by the stone picnic tables one by one. Each table had a different clique of people seated at it. One table had a group of soccer nuts chattering away about David Beckham and America's spectacular loss in the World Cup and another had a giggling group of girls discussing MTV's _My Super Sweet Sixteen_. Another table, one of the more outlying ones, had a group of kids gathered around, arguing about something called '_52_' Snatches of "Batwoman" and "Kahndaq". The girls avoided the comic geek table, arguments about _Star Trek_ and _Dungeons and Dragons_ were definitely not what they wanted to hear over lunch.

The two ended up at one of the tables that were closest to the Library. Their friends and acquaintances floated by and within five minutes, everyone was happily chatting and eating. Constance, Elise's best friend, was half way through a long story about her brother and their riding instructor when she stopped. Kirstin turned to see the VIP of the day coming their way. She saw, out of the corner of her eye, the various reactions of her table mates. Shock and intrigue and, most importantly, Elise's face was laser focused on the Wanna-Be-Senator. Kirstin turned, and put on a smile.

Two of them, like two halves of the same person, identical twins. She had not considered two girls. Two perfect little girls, mirror images of one another. They sat there, on the stone bench, standing out against their flawed friends, like beacons in the night (You've used both "sat" and "standing" in the same sentence. It's not wrong; it just sounds a li'l but… off). They were just waiting for her to find them.

* * *

They walked down the halls, she was between Kirstin and Elise. Their parents, if you could call them that, were in New York for the week. At the end of the day, after Elise was finished with Student Council and Kirstin was done painting the scenery for the school play, their driver would pick them up and take them to their soulless mansion. Little girls were meant to be cherished, loved, not ignored. "If you like, you can come with me today. I'm filming a commercial for my campaign..."

The girls looked at each other, blue eyes meeting silently. They nodded, "Okay."

Elise and Kirstin had ridden in limos more time then they could count. They had seen large houses before. They'd never been kidnapped. They hadn't realized anything was wrong or off until they were locked in the basement. That's when the icy cold fingers of fear invaded their psyches.

Author's Note: Okay, now I'm using things I can be sued for again. I feel better.

As noted, MTV owns _My Super Sweet Sixteen_. I wouldn't claim that as mine, no way no how. That show both scares and disgusts me. Batwoman, Kahndaq and the comic book _52_ belong to DC Comics. I'm not sure who owns Dungeons and Dragons, but it's not me.

The Warren Walker Academy is quite real. I stole the name and made up the rest.

* * *


	19. Chapter XVIII: Victims and Suspects

_Chapter XVIII  
Victims and Suspects_

Joseph Devlin had a pretty easy job, which was why he did not want to screw it up. All he had to do was drive two pre-teens around without wrecking. He had to take care of the car and of the girls, when they were in the car. That was it. So in his spare time, he could pursue other interests, like Raul, the pool boy and _Final Fantasy X-2._

When he pulled up at the gate of Warren Walker, the stereo was already set to blast out the mindless bubblegum pop that the girl's preferred and the back cooler was stocked with the brand of water they liked. He was thirty minutes early, as always, so he kicked back and flipped his cellphone open so he could play Tetris. Four o'clock rolled around and then four fifteen. Joseph looked around, a bit annoyed. Miss Kirstin must have gotten caught up in her painting again. By four thirty, he was getting down right pissed.

He got out of the car and made his way over to the theater. It was empty. Only the pencil thin drama teacher was still there, shutting off the lights. She looked up, a bit surprised, "Yes? Can I help you?" He nodded, "Yeah, I'm here for Kirstin and Elise Holloway." The woman shook her head, "Kirstin didn't show up today." Joseph felt his heartbeat go into triple time. "Okay, there must have been some student thingy that went long."

Mr. Peterson, the Headmaster and sponsor of the Student Council had not seen Elise either. The balding man shrugged, "I've not seen either of the twins since the assembly." Joseph called both girls' cellphones, a last resort, and was booted to voice mail both times. His next call was to their parents.

* * *

At five minutes after five o'clock, dispatch got the call about the missing Holloway girls. Two minutes later, Maria Rymer laid down her cellphone and thanked God for friends in high and low places. Five full minutes after the press had already began moving, Detective Sofia Curtis got the call. When the first news flash broke through a rerun of Friends at five-thirty, Catherine Willows snapped the heel off of her shoe when she stomped her foot in pure frustration.

* * *

Sara Sidle's was not set to go off until six pm and since she'd gotten into bed at around two in the afternoon, it was more like a nap than a true sleep. No matter what time it was set to go off, the reliable clock radio was beaten to the punch by the shrill tones of Sara's cell phone ringing. 

As always, Sara's phone, pager and alarm clock were all sitting on her bedside table so when a noise was made, Sara's still-mostly-asleep hand shot out and started groping around for the device that was going off. She found the cellphone and flipped it open. She brought it to her ear but before she could mumble off her usual greeting of 'Sidle', Catherine began her attack. As her colleague's words reached her brain, Sara's eyes shot open. She rolled to her back and stared at the ceiling, trying to make her brain comprehend what was coming out of Catherine's mouth. She was failing miserably.

An hour later, coffee in hand, Sara made it to Warren Walker Academy. She had called Sofia and had slowly pieced together what had happened.

* * *

There was a leak in the department somewhere, because the press had found out about the same time Sofia had. They hadn't even called Grissom before Channel 5 had broke the story. The Holloways had actually spoken to the press and by the time Sara had arrived at the school, Channel 5 had an exclusive and heart breaking plea from the Holloways, begging for the safe return of their daughters.

* * *

Sofia stood on the fringe of everything, simply observing for the moment. The Sheriff himself had shown up and was making a show. This case was quickly getting out of hand. She looked around, she watched the uniforms scamper from here to there, destroying any evidence that they could have possibly found. The killer, or 'Doll Collector' as the media so lovingly called him, was getting bolder. This time he'd snatched two girls from their school. When the CSIs arrived, Greg first, followed by an infuriated Catherine, and finally Sara, they began going over what little evidence they had. 

The press circled around them like vultures, constantly looking for a scrap of juicy meat to swoop down on. Getting in from the parking lot to the school grounds was like running a gauntlet. Questions were being shouted, microphones being shoved in faces. Greg kept his head down and got through just fine, but then again, Greg was young and he was only a CSI I. Catherine didn't rush through, she strutted through the gauntlet, kit in hand, head held high. Sofia had to give her credit, the woman could handle the press. When she saw a third black SUV pull up, she moved. She went out to meet Sara and escort her through the blood-thirsty hordes of reporters. They didn't speak as they walked, but her hand on Sara's shoulder made them both feel better. They were almost to the gates when Maria Rymer stepped into their path, planting herself firmly, microphone in hand, camera man behind her. "Detective Curtis, CSI Sidle, as the lead investigators, what can you tell us about this latest development?" Sofia pushed by the woman, none to gently shouldering her way through. A flippant "No comment" was thrown over her shoulder. Sofia was really starting to hate Channel 5.

* * *

The school was huge and beautiful. Warren Walker was old and prestigious and very choosy about who they let in. This was the kind of place where parent's sent their kids to prepare them for Ivy League schools like Yale, Stanford. Sara and her friends at Harvardhad called kids like these 'Ties'. 

Sara shook her head, clearing it of esoteric thoughts. She looked around, teachers and students had left. They could get into the girl's lockers, their school email addresses, their cell phone records. The Sheriff was handling the parents, some big time Sam Braun-level rich people. Sara sighed, there was not much they could do. If this was the killer, she was probably already ahead of them. She would have the girls locked away already. Sara bit her lip for a moment and thought. Her mind raced over the possible connections and how to find them. The first and most obvious thing to do would be to check the school's security feed. Sara frowned. If this woman was smart, though, she wouldn't stick out. She would fit in, look natural. Sara ran the heel of her hand across her forehead and heaved a sigh. She was a CSI, not a criminal psychologist. So she needed evidence. She forced herself to slow down and think everything through one step at a time. A school like this would have some kind of log for visitors. They would also do background checks on their substitutes and, well, all of the staff. That's where she needed to start.

* * *

Catherine was with the Headmaster. For a short time, she'd sent Lindsey to a private school, so she had some idea of what was going on. The procedures and the snootiness were not new to her. Alexander Peterson, Headmaster, was torn between protecting his school, kissing the Holloway's asses and of course, covering his own ass. She resisted the incredibly strong urge to strangle him and continued questioning him. "Did any of the students seem to like either of the girls too much? Have they reported any problems? Have any of your security guards reported any strangers at the gates or in the drive? Has any part of the regular school routine been changed?" 

She heard someone come up behind her and turned enough to see that it was Sara. Catherine turned back to the Headmaster. "This is my colleague, Sara Sidle." The man took off his glasses and cleaned them with a clothe from his pocket. "Well, Ms. Willows, Ms. Sidle, you can ask every question in the world, but I don't think I can help you. Elise and Kirstin were model students. Liked by teachers and peers alike, we've never had trouble out of either of them. His eyes kept darting over to the Holloways as he spoke. Catherine sighed, but Sara looked the man in the eyes and squared her shoulders. "Sir, we're going to need a full faculty and staff roster, as well as your visitors log and list of approved substitutes." A flier taped to a cork board caught her eye, "And what was the assembly for today?"

Catherine controlled her facial reactions rigidly. She would have eventually gotten to where Sara was. Once again, though, Sara was a few steps ahead of everyone else. Her face didn't give anything away as the Headmaster nodded and quickly walked away. The two CSIs stood in silence for a moment. Sara stared at the sunset through the huge windows of the school. "I didn't know about this until you called me, Catherine." She knew that, well she did now. "I know." They weren't looking at each other, Sara looked out the window and Catherine studied the portrait of the school's founder. "I over reacted. This case has got me...on edge. All these little girls and this man just keeps." Sara interrupted her. "Woman, Catherine. This killer is a woman." Catherine spun on her heel, and faced her colleague. "What?" Sara sighed, "It's a woman. Archie and I analyzed that video from the library. It's a woman, Catherine. If we can find a connection between the schools and the library, one woman that connects everything. We could have her."

Catherine may not have gotten along with Sara, or even liked her very much. Her colleague, though, was a good CSI and there was something in her voice. Something in that Californian accent, it was determination. If there was one thing Catherine knew about Sara, if the woman set her mind to something, she would not stop until she had gotten it.

"All right, let's find your mysterious connection."

* * *

They took the records back to CSI. Greg was chasing down leads and records from the other schools and the library. Sara read and paced. She paced to and fro, she paced fro and to. Catherine had never seen Sara quite like this. There had been many times that Sara had "gone off the deep end" but this time she had a cold focus that was chilling, to say the least. "This woman is educated, smart. She has figured out how to trick five girls into her clutches." Sara frowned and continued with her musings. "If we can find her in time, we might be able to talk her down. Get Elise and Kirstin back relatively unharmed." Catherine looked at her watch, the longest any of the girls had lasted was two days. The clock was against them. She watched Sara pace and stare at the case board full of young faces. 

"Sara, you've got to slow down. The evidence doesn't tell us any of this. You're not a profiler or a psychologist, you can't climb inside this killer's mind. All you can do, all either of us can do, is process the evidence."

* * *

Greg came in around eight, his arms loaded down with files and papers. The layout room was full of paper and empty coffee cups already. Sara grabbed the files out of his hand almost immediately and put them on the table. She flipped through them and began scribbling things down in her familiar chicken scratch scrawl. 

He'd never seen her like this. Sweat trickled down her brow even though it was a cool seventy degrees in the lab. Her brown eyes were focused and as hard as diamonds. She looked much like Sofia had earlier. Both women were shoulders deep in the case and Catherine was too. Greg was worried, he'd seen them all go through cases like this before and they all carried scars from them.

At nine o'clock, Sara found the pattern she'd been looking for since the beginning. She wrote the name in her case notes in big block letter, Madison Daniels.

* * *

Unaware of the scrutiny that was now focused on her, Madison Daniels poured herself a double shot of brandy and swirled it around in her glass. She was a woman of power from a prestigious family, one that had always pushed her to do her best in everything. It was this drive that made her work. She had started out as an aid to a low level city councilman out of college and she had gone on from there. She had spent years working. Fighting her way through the world of men. She'd taken the Nevada Legislature by storm with her family first initiative. She'd pushed that through and then, when she'd run for the Nevada Senate, she'd turned hard on crime, she was the first woman from Legislature to ever watch an execution. That had lead to her two terms as Lieutenant Governor of Nevada. Carson City, though, had grown tiring to her. She had craved more. More power, more exposure, just more. She'd run for a seat in the Congress. While most saw this as a step down, she had always known what she was doing. She won her place in the House of Representatives in a landslide vote and as soon as she'd gotten there, Washington had taken her in like new favorite daughter. 

She was single, devoted to her work. She was attractive, she was kind, she was exactly what everyone aspired to be, the politician of the new century. Her coiffed blonde hair and cornflower blue eyes gave her a look of youth, her well tailored suits and sensible shoes made her look professional.

She had been invited to lavish dinners at the White House. She had entertained ambassadors and multi-billionaires. When she had thrown her hat into the ring for Senate, no one was surprised. Political analysts were already looking at her, in six years she would look like a very strong candidate for vice-president, and in ten years time, she would be President of the United States.

Her life, though, was not complete as it appeared to be. Even if she had not eschewed men, had married, her life would be imperfect. In a sick twist of fate, she was barren. That was intolerable. There would be no more in the Daniels line to take after her, no brilliant little girl with blonde hair to stand beside her mother when she was inaugurated.

That was a flaw, a mistake, that she was currently taking care of. Madison was contemplating on what to do with her two newest acquisitions when her doorbell rang. With the news flickering on her television and her next speech only half read, she rose from her place on the couch and wandered through the hallway to see who would disturb her so late in the evening. If it was her campaign manger, he would be thrown out on his rear for this little annoyance.

* * *

Sara and Sofia stood outside the enormous townhouse. It was dark, but the lights were on so both women assumed someone was at home. 

The door opened and both women were treated to their first glimpse of Madison Daniels. In her robe she was less then professional in appearance. As soon as she saw them, and the uniformed officers behind them, she straitened up and her face became hard. "Can I help you?" Sofia inclined her head,  
"Congresswoman Daniels, we hate to come to your home like this, but I am Detective Sofia Curtis and this is Sara Sidle of the LVPD Crime Lab. You were at Warren Walker Academy today?" The woman blinked, "Why yes. I gave a lecture there this afternoon. I've been following the story about the missing girls." Sofia nodded, "We were hoping to talk to you, maybe ask you a few questions about what happened today." Daniels pushed her blonde hair out of her eyes. "Yes, of course. Come in."

* * *

Sara and Sofia went down the hallway behind their hostess, the uniform waited outside. Both women, trained observers, made note of the citations, diplomas and pictures that hung on the walls. 

They entered the woman's office. It was an intimidating room, painted a powerful and passionate red. A large oak desk dominated the room and this was where the Congresswoman positioned herself. She folded her hands and braced herself behind the majestic desk. "Now, how can I help you?" Sara didn't answer immediately, her attention was drawn to one of the bookshelves. A picture sat there, for all to see. A young girl with long blonde hair in a white dress. It was obviously Daniels at a younger age, Daniels and her own mother.

Sara turned and focused her full attention on the woman. "You've given speeches at Greenspun Middle, Sedway Middle, The North Vegas branch of the Las Vegas Public Library and Warren Walker Academy. On the very same days that a girl has disappeared from each location. That is a very strong string of coincidences, Congresswoman Daniels. Is there anything you'd like to tell us?"

Sofia's jaw actually dropped a little. She knew Sara could be blunt at times, but damn. She jumped in, "What she means, Ma'am, is that there could be someone in your group or perhaps stalking you that has been taking these girls. Anything you've seen could help us at this point."

Sara only stared.

Author's Note: If you're rusty on American Politics, each state has it's own legislature. Almost all of those have two houses, a lower and an upper. The national Congress in Washington DC is also made up of two houses, House of Representatives, which is pretty much on par with the House of Commons in Brittan. Then there's the Senate which is more or less the American version of the House of Lords. Elections are in November. The House is based on population and the Senate has 2 members from each state. Okay, that's all for Government class today, students, this will be covered on the final.


	20. Chapter XIX: It Takes Two

_Chapter XIX  
It Takes Two_

When they left, Madison sat back in her chair. The detective was lovely, polite and very hard nosed about her job. The brunette though, there was something about her. Something eerie and wrong. She did not like this CSI, not one bit.

She picked up the phone and touched speed dial three, the Mayor of Las Vegas would be hearing about this. Half an hour later, slightly amused by the man's frantic apologies, she hung up her phone. She wandered down the halls of her home. It was perfect, but empty. There should have been echoes of piano practice or the laughter of young children hosting tea parties. There was not, at least not yet.

She went down stairs, to the basement level. Here, everything was just as ordered, just as perfect. On the back wall there was a window and when she looked into it, she could see them.

Her newest acquisitions, the girls that would make her life perfect. Twins, like matching bookend, Elise and Kirstin would be perfect. They were huddled together in the corner. Their blonde hair messy, their uniforms wrinkled.

Staring at their blonde locks and blue eyes reminded her of the detective, the detective made her think of the CSI. The CSI made her angry. She had accused her, had caused problems. She was a problem. A thorn in her side. A thorn that needed to be removed. She opened the door beside the window and walked in the room..

* * *

Elise was scared, not the kind of scared you got when you were lost at the mall, or during a horror movie. It was the deep bone chilling kind of scared that made her want her mother and father more then anything else in the world. It was like all the nightmares of early childhood, the boogey man, the monster in the closet, the beast under the bed, they were all real and they were in her. 

The Congresswoman came back into the room. Kirstin and Elise looked at her, their blue eyes wide and scared.

"Hello girls."

Kirstin and Elise did not answer. Kirstin, unlike her sister, was not cowering in fear, she was waiting for her chance. The woman, she insisted they call her mother, came closer and she stroked their faces with her soft hands. "It's okay, girls, I'm not going to hurt you, we're family." She patted Kirstin on the head and the girl reacted. She jumped forward, tackling the other woman. "RUN ELISE!" Elise jumped to her feet, and began to scramble towards the door.

Neither girl had realized that the woman had a knife. At Kirstin's scream, Elise turned back. What she saw was horrible, terrifying and she screamed as well. Blood gushed from a deep cut in her twin's throat. Elise screamed and she felt something trickle down her leg. She's peed herself, but that didn't matter. She started backing up until her back hit the wall. Kirstin, hands over her throat, fell to her knees and then on to her face. The blood pooled beneath her, bright red. Kirstin's fingers went lax. Her twin was dead and her murderer now stood over her, a fierce look on her face. "You little bitches! You were supposed to be perfect!" Elise's chin quivered as she fought back tears. Madison Daniels stood over her, a large silver knife already wet with Kirstin's blood in her right hand. Elise closed her eyes and didn't even scream when the knife cut into the tender skin of her neck.

* * *

The room was awash in blood, again. Why couldn't she find a good little girl? She would have to wash the room down again, and her best blue silk robe was ruined. She pushed her blonde hair out of her blue eyes with a bloody hand. Now the girls needed a bath on top of everything else.

* * *

Morning dawned bright and early and the Sheriff began it by having the Mayor crawl up his ass. So as he set off to the Forensics Lab and he was not in the most charitable of moods. He crashed through the doors, almost plowing down Nick Stokes. He gave the Texan a passing glance. "All the CSIs, briefing room. Now!" 

Nick stood, frozen in place. "Crap."

Conrad Ecklie had just arrived at his office and was about to boot up his computer when the Sherrif threw his door open. "ECKLIE!"

Sara was in the trace lab, trying to isolate the exact powder she'd found on the girls so far. There was so little of it that it was hard to tell exactly what it was, but God help her, she had faith in David Hodges.

When Grissom came in, she barely looked up.

* * *

Gilbert Grissom had gotten a page from Ecklie, who'd gotten a visit from the Sheriff who was currently demanding to talk to the CSIs. Sara was still at the lab, looking exhausted but determined. What got him the most, though, was that when he told her that the Sheriff was there, she didn't even seem surprised.

* * *

Catherine strutted into the meeting room. She wasn't quite sure exactly what was going on, but since they were hip deep in a high profile case, it probably wasn't for a friendly round of BINGO. 

Sure enough, the Sheriff was standing there, glaring at them all. "I have got the mayor and the press breathing down my neck. Panic in the streets. Little girls are being killed and you've got nothing!" No one answered. "The Doll Collector Case is now priority, I want the entire Grave Yard Shift on it." He paused. "And if ANYONE disturbs Madison Daniels with wild accusations again. They will be out of a job." A vein throbbed in the side of his head as the Sheriff continued. "I want this case solved" He growled and threw down the morning paper. The newsprint spread across the table. In big bold letters, the headline screamed 'TWINS TAKEN BY KILLER' 'LVPD CLUELESS!' "And I wanted it solved yesterday!" He stormed out of the room and the CSIs stood in silence. Conrad Ecklie tugged at his tied, "Well you heard the man, get to work."

Sara turned to leave, but before she was out the door, she heard Ecklie clear his throat. "Not you, Sidle."

* * *

She stared at Ecklie and he stared right back. There was no one in the room but them. He put his hands on the table and turned his attention to the newspaper. "Sidle, this case has been a cluster-fuck since day one. Let me assure you that if this case goes down, you're going with it. Work the evidence and leave Madison Daniels alone." 

Sara stood rigidly straight, her fists balled up. "She's a viable suspect." Ecklie shot up. "SHE IS A MEMBER OF THIS NATION'S FUCKING CONGRESS!" He shook his head, "You are walking a thin line here. Don't think Grissom can protect you from this." Sara turned to leave. "I don't want or need his protection."

Author's Note: That was a little bloody, wasn't it?


	21. Chapter XX: Calm Before The Storm

_Chapter XX  
The Calm Before the Storm_

Sofia was at work. Though they'd spoken over the phone, Sara knew she wouldn't see her all day. That was, perhaps, for the better. Sara spent the day on her computer, going through everything she could find on Madison Daniels.

She was the all American girl, it seemed. Her father had been a lawyer, her mother had been an accountant. Madison was an only child. She'd excelled at everything she'd touched and had went to college on a Rhodes Scholarship. Her parents had died when she was twenty-five, a horrible accident. Their car had gone off the cliffs while on vacation in Monterey. Sara knew those roads and they were dangerous. She also knew, from what she'd seen, that Madison had inherited everything after her death. What else could a recent grad ask for? She had never married, never had children, though her platform was often based on family values and safety.

Sara knew it was her. Madison Daniels was the Doll Collector, she just couldn't prove it, not yet.

* * *

Catherine sat on her daughter's bed. The room was a mess, it was the very essence of her daughter. There were clothes everywhere, school books scattered around, a Pirates of the Caribian screensaver was on the computer. On the bedside table there was a picture. Lindsey, herself and Eddie at Lindsey's sixth birthday party. They all looked so happy, so wholesome. The All-American Family. Except of course, that she had been working herself half to death and Eddie had been screwing half of Nevada. The picture though, didn't show that. It didn't show that she'd been exausted at that party or that Eddie had left early. It only showed the three of them, smiling over a birthday cake.

* * *

Sara stared at everything she had and Catherine's words echoed in her head. 

"You're not a profiler...not a psychologist."

No, Sara wasn't a trained psychologist. She did, however, know evil when she saw it.

She reached for her phone. She had a plan. It was hair-brained, half baked and could potentially end her career, but it was the only plan she could come up with.

* * *

Catherine watched the children run down the steps, happy that another day of school was finally at an end. Catherine found Lindsey in the crowd and watched her little girl come towards her car. She looked beautiful. All blonde tresses and blue eyes, innocent and smart...and hers. Unbidden tears sprang to Catherine's eyes and she didn't bother wiping them away as they fell down her cheeks.

When Lindsey opened the Denali's door, that was what she saw. Her mother, crying, for no apparent reason whatsoever. "Mom?"

Catherine blinked. Her daughter was still right here, alive and well. She pulled the girl into a hug. "Hey Sweetie."

Confused, Lindsey hugged her Mother back. "Um Hi."

Author's Note: A small break before we plunge into the wild blue yonder, folks. If you've yet to buckle up, I suggest doing so now. Also, please secure all lose articles and set your seats to the full and upright position, it will be a bumpy ride from here on out. You know you love it.


	22. Chapter XI: Old Friends and New Trouble

_Chapter XXI_

_Old Friends_

_New Trouble_

Seattle, WA

Wednesday 2:32 pm

Dr. Cambridge Parker stared out of her window, watching the drizzle soak the gray streets of Seattle. She was supposed to be listening to her patient and she was, sort of.. Jasmine Henry was a bored housewife with a shoe-obsession and a bad habit of boffing hot underage pool boys and foreign maids. Her sessions always consisted of a long list of that week's conquests and country club gossip. Cami didn't need to TiVo _Desperate Housewives_, she had the real thing.

They were somewhere between the sales clerk at Maceys and her plastic surgeon's new assistant when Gideon, her receptionist came in. Cambridge swiveled around in her leather office chair and steepled her fingers. "Yes?"

Gideon knew very well that Jasmine Henry was a self-absorbed attention seeker, so he did not look too upset. "I hate to interrupt you, but you've got a call on line one." Making note of her patient's put out look, Cami frowned, "Important enough to interrupt a session, Gideon?" The man quirked his lips, "It's Sara Sidle." Shock came first, then a cunning plan sprang to mind. "Jasmine, you'll have to reschedule with Gideon. This is a long time patient of mine. Very unstable." Her patient, a gossip glutton, arched her perfectly manicured eyebrows. "Is she dangerous?" Cami had to control a smile. "I can't say much, doctor-patient privilege you understand...but." She leaned forward, as though she was about to tell some secret. "Miss Sidle is an obsessive woman. She has risk taking tendencies and problems with authority." Jasmine, eyes wide, "What does she do?" Cami bit her lip to hold in laughter, "She harasses police officers and sneaks on to crime scenes to look at dead bodies." Jasmine let out a little squeak, "Is she a necrophiliac?" Cambridge sat up straight, "I've said too much. I'll see you next week, Jasmine."

When she was alone, she grabbed the phone and punched the button for line one. She leaned back into her chair and kicked off her high heels. "I just told a horny house wife that you're an obsessive necrophiliac adrenaline junkie with authority issues." There was a chuckle on the other side of the line. "That's me, well more or less." There was a pause, "How fast can you be in Vegas?"

Cami had known Sara for years. She was one of the few who really knew Sara Sidle. Not the stoic workaholic facade she hid behind, but the real woman. There was a tone in her friend's voice, one she hadn't heard in a very long time, that of desperation. "If I fly myself, three and a half hours. How serious is this, Wild Woman?" She could hear Sara's smile over the phone, a quick half grin that showed off the gap between her two front teeth. "Marti Gras, 1994." Cami sat up straight so fast she almost toppled over. "That bad?" Sara sighed and Cami made her decision. "I'll call you after I file my flight plan."

* * *

Cami would be arriving at seven o'clock. Cambridge Parker and Sara Sidle had met in their first semester at Harvard and had been friends since. It was the kind of friendship that stretched over time and miles. If Cami would have been the one who called, Sara would have gone just as quickly. Cami was just about the closest thing to family Sara really had. She loved her like the sister she'd never had.

So when she called Sofia at six, she was a little nervous. She was introducing Cami to Sofia. She hadn't done that...in years. It was the closest thing to "Meet the family" that Sara would ever have, because she sure as hell wasn't going to visit the California Women's Correctional Facility for a meet and greet.

* * *

Sofia was intrigued. When Sara said she was bringing in outside help, she'd thought that the woman had meant another CSI or perhaps an FBI agent. So as she waited with Sara at the commercial gate at McCarran Airport, she was curious. "This Doctor Parker is flying herself in?" Sara smiled, "Yeah."

Sofia jingled the loose change in her pocket. "So...are you going to tell me about this head shrinker or not?" Sara smiled and for the first time in a few days, the smile reached her dark brown eyes. "You have to see her to believe her." The gate opened and a few people came in. Sofia quickly ran her eyes back and forth over the small crowd. She immediately disregarded the carrot topped teenager and the bald man. She saw an older woman in a gray suit and dyed hair blonde hair that was just beginning to show it's roots. That had to be Doctor Parker.

"HEY SARA!" Sofia whipped around, and to her surprise a lean woman with jet black hair and a lopsided gin had grabbed Sara in a bear hug. Sofia grinned, if only the lab could see her now. The cold untouchable Sara Sidle being hugged in the middle of the airport. She was trim and clean cut, but utterly casual in faded blue jeans and a tank top. They finally broke apart the hug and Sara smiled, "Nice to see you, Cami." The woman held Sara out at arms length. "You look good, Sar, a little frayed around the edges, but good." Then she turned and looked at Sofia. Piercing green eyes cut through her and Sofia suddenly understood how Grissom's bugs must feel, living under glass. "And this must be the great Sofia Curtis." Sofia shrugged, "That's what my mother named me, well minus the Great part." They stared at each other, old friend and new girl friend. Sara stood to the side and figited as the silence stretched into the uncomfortable zone. Then Cami smiled, "Well she's definitely a step up from your last few finds." Sofia arched a brow, "Really?" The dark haired doctor grinned and threw her bag over her shoulder. "Yes. From what I've heard about you, you're quite a find, Detective." Sofia shot a look over at Sara, "Funny, I've never heard anything about you." Cambridge threw her head back and laughed, "Sara's very protective of me. Well, she's really protective of all the black mail material I have on her...Like the time she." The woman's words were abruptly cut off by Sara's hand over her mouth.

Sofia smiled at the two as she unlocked the car. In the middle of a dark and heavy case, seeing Sara so care free was worth more then Sofia could imagine. Sara sat beside her, in the passenger seat and Cambridge got in back. "So tell me why I dragged my ass down here, Wild Woman."

Sara nodded, and the car's mood went form light to somber in a heart beat.  
Sofia watched the woman in the backseat. She listened and as Sara spoke, she took out a pen and paper from her bag and started taking notes. Somewhere in the middle, Sara paused. "Cami may have a practice of her own, but she loans herself to the FBI all the time. She watched _Silence of the Lambs_ one too many times in college." The woman in the back scoffed. "Oh please, Wild Woman, you're the one who actually does this for a living!" Sofia over at Sara, "Wild Woman? Do I get to hear about this?" There was a chuckle from the back. "I dunno, I don't want to warp your fragile mind. Now, don't look back here unless you want to see me naked." Sofia, by automatic reaction glanced in her mirror and sure enough, the woman was stripping in the back. She jerked the wheel. "What the hell! This is a city issue car!"

Cambridge buttoned up her shirt. "Well I can't go in like this, besides, Sara told me that you once changed at a crime scene in front of like five guys." She grinned when Sara started swatting at her, and Sofia coughed.

* * *

Sara looked stressed and the case she was describing was one that would dig under her best friend's skin and fester for a good long time. Sara's dark eyes were tired and haunted. Cami saw other things though. She saw a little smile every time Sara looked at Sofia. She'd known Sara since they were eighteen years old and she'd never seen her go all gooey like she did when she looked at the blonde detective.  
Knowing her for this long, she also knew that Sara wouldn't have called her unless she was sure she needed her. "All right, Sara. From what you've told me, I can give you a rough profile. We're looking for a woman, at least forty years old. She's educated, not as smart as me, of course, but she's definitely got at least one college degree. Now. Who's your suspect, Sara?"

Sofia chuckled and turned on her turn signal. "She knows you." Sara grinned, "Yeah." Sara twisted around in her seat. "Does the name Madison Daniels ring a bell?" The stockings that Cami had been pulling on ripped under her fingers. "You're joking." The raven haired woman in the backseat looked at Sara and then Sofia and back again at Sara. "Madison Daniels is a power player. She's one of the president's confidantes and, if you haven't noticed, she's running for the Senate." Sara only raised a single eyebrow. "She's a suspect."

Cami pulled on her business jacket and straightened her collar. "She's a suspect. You're accusing her of brutally murdering three girls?" Sara nodded and Cambridge Parker blew out a dramatic breathe. "There is a thin line between genius and insanity, Sara and being out in the desert heat has pushed you over it. You want me to profile a case under the table and off the books and then you want me to do a psych profile on a woman who could be president within the decade.

Sofia winced, when the woman put it that way. It did sound like her girlfriend had passed Grissom up in the race to Crazy Town.

Sara shrugged, "Pretty much." There was another elaborate sigh from the back. "It's a good thing that I love you."

* * *

Officer Adam Murphy knew he'd screwed up. He was still on Graveyard patrols in the middle of nowhere. Mess up just a little bit and suddenly you're a bad cop. As far as he was concerned the high and mighty Detective Curtis could take a long walk off of a short pier. So now between her and the Geek Squad Bitch, he was doing grunt work that was usually set aside for out-of-the-academy-green rookies.  
There were advantages to working this God-awful assignment though. One of them was named Casey Roper and his hands were currently cupping her pert lace encased c-cup breasts under her khaki uniform shirt.

Her clever hands were busy unbuckling his heavy belt. He was in the process of backing her fine ass up against a tree when she let out a yelp and tripped backwards. He held in his curse and bent down to help her back up. Halfway down, he froze. "Oh fuck me." Her witty reply was cut off when the young officer saw what she had tripped over, a little girl's leg.

* * *

They had ordered Chinese and locked themselves in one of the many conference rooms at the PD. Between the gruesome facts of the case, Sofia found herself hearing about Sara's "wild" college days.

Cami expertly wielded her chopsticks and scooped the noodles into her mouth. Then she jabbed at Sara. "So we were in Denver and I was skiing, Sara here said skiing was too tame and got herself a board. We rode up the lifts and were all ready to go down the beginners course." At that point Sara was slinking down in her chair, face red, as her friend continued. "And Sara sees this blonde snow bunny going down the experts course. Of course Sara being Sara, she starts after her, and me knowing that Sara is about as accident prone as a Kennedy cousin on the snow, go after her. Long story short, we spent the rest of our vacation in the lounge She broke her left arm and my tail bones never been the same since." Sofia took a sip of her cola and gave Sara a long look.

Sara pretended to be interested in her vegetarian plate, but her gap-toothed grin won out. "And I got her number too." Cambridge threw a napkin at her, "Yea, she signed it on your _cast_, Wild Woman."

Their evening, as enlightening as it had been, was cut short when Sara and Sofia's pagers had gone off. The twins had been found,quite dead, at Lake Mead. Sara ran both of her hands through her hair and stood up. "Lets go." Cami smiled, "I'll see you around."

* * *

The ride to Lake Mead was over an hour long, the drive there was mostly quiet, but Sara never let go of her hand. When they saw blue lights, both women squared their shoulders and Sara leaned over and gave Sofia a small kiss on the cheek. "She likes you, you know." Then she was out of the car, kit in hand and Sara was gone, replaced by CSI Sidle. Sofia blanked her face and Detective Curtis followed her colleague.

Her calm face lasted for all of a minute. Then she saw Adam Murphy. Sofia looked over at one of the other uniforms, "Please tell me he didn't find the bodies. The uniform scowled, "He and Officer Roper litteraly fell over the bodies."  
Sara was already ducking under the crime scene tape and was half way to the bodies. Sofia could see the flashbulbs through the trees. The uniform frowned, and Sofia followed his eye line. The dark semi-circle hickey on Casey Roper's neck hadn't gotten during the line of duty. Sofia gritted her teeth and counted to ten. Could this case get any worse?

Author's Note: Owch. I really do give this Officer Murphy a hard time.So theres the new charecter I've been yaking about for a while. Well, I'm tierd and grumpy and think I should go to bed now. Hope everyone enjoyed the last couple of chapters, I would love to hear feed back on them. Now, I think there's a bed calling my name...well, screaming my name.


	23. Chapter XXII: Have You Ever?

_Chapter XXII_

_Have You Ever Danced With the Devil?_

The scene had been destroyed, Completely and utterly trashed by an idiot and his bimbo. Those were not kind thoughts, but Catherine was not in a kind mood. Lake Mead was one of her favorite places, but seeing two little girls laying there on it's shore, very dead...well it tugged the tears from her eyes. Everyone was there, from Grissom to Greg, every one of the night shift CSIs was there. Not that it was going to do them any good. The bodies had once again been washed and the scene disturbed.

Then, as if things were not bleak enough, the press was right there, wanting to know what they had. They had nothing and the fucking press knew it and they told all of Vegas so.  
Grissom, weary in moonlight, sighed, "Get Dave to pack them up, we can't do anything else here." Catherine grunted her disgust. The Great Gil Grissom was throwing in the towel on a scene. Defeat tasted bitter.

* * *

Doctor Robbins sighed as he snapped on his gloves. Two new autopsies, courtesy of the Doll Collector. When his door swung open, he expected to see Sara or perhaps Grissom. He didn't know the woman. He pushed his clear plastic face mask up. "Can I help you?" The woman was dressed in an obviously tailored suit and her short black hair was pulled back. She smiled at him and grabbed her own pair of latex gloves from the box kept by the door, she also grabbed the extra face mask and pulled it over her lovely face. "I'm profiling the case, what can you tell me?"  
He hadn't known a Profiler had been called in on the case. He was not surprised, they needed all the help they could get, even the FBI. "He turned on his tape recorder. Doctor Albert Robbins, ME, proceeding with the postmortem examination of Elise Holloway. In attendance is" He looked at the woman and did not miss her flinch. "Dr. Cambridge Parker, PhD." He echoed her name and they went through the autopsy. The woman had her own tape recorder out and their voices echoed off of the autopsy bay walls. She asked him questions and made some insightful observations. "There are no hesitation marks. In the Winters and Thompson cases you noted hesitation, but in the Black case there was none." He nodded, "The Black case has been unique so far. There were signs of abuse right before the TOD." The woman nodded and gingerly picked up the dead girl's hand. "There is bruising around her right wrist, like someone grabbed her. She lay the hand back down and picked up the left hand. "Scrapes on the palms of both hands, like she was maybe trying to flee." They finished with Elise and moved to her sister, Kirstin. Robbins immediately noted the neck wound. "The COD is a single knife wound to the neck, but this is much deeper then the others. While the other wounds just cut the jugular, this time." He sighed, "Victim was partially decapitated." She nodded and muttered into her own tape recorder. "The killer is accelerating. It is possible that Kirstin tried to defend her sister, perhaps she attacked the killer and wanted Elise to run. That earned her a harsher death. There is definitely an explosion of anger. The brutality of the neck wound is clearly showing that the killer lost control." She moved around the head. "There is bruising on the shoulder and arms, defensive wounds. Kirstin put up a fight."

A voice sounded from the doors. "You speak as if you know her." Both Robbins and Parker looked up. Grissom walked in, keeping his ungloved hands behind him. "I don't believe we've met." Cambridge looked over at the ME, and Robbins took off his gloves. "We're done here, anyway." She took off her gloves and shut off her tape recorder. She gave the new face a once-over, "You must be Grissom." She held out a hand, "I'm Doctor Cambridge Parker. I'm compiling a profile on your killer." The etymologist raised an eyebrow. "Dr. Parker of _Inside the Criminal Mind_ and _The Abuse Cycle_?" She smiled, "I see you've run into my work." They went out the door and Grissom gave her a puzzled look. "Your work is considered a revolution in criminal psychology." She shrugged, "You have to be good at something." They walked down the corridor, "I agree, but I don't recall calling for a Profiler. Especially a Harvard Grad who freely admits that she prefers not to do high profile cases." He motioned her into his office, "So I suppose Sara called in a favor?" The door shut behind them and Cami quickly understood the allure of Gilbert Grissom.

* * *

"I am not going on a wild goose-chase with you, Sara. Especially not after the Sheriff himself told you to back off of Madison Daniels." She had expected Catherine to be this way. Sara did not blame her. Catherine had a daughter and a position to maintain. When Greg shrugged his shoulders and left her standing there too, though, that hurt. She could rationalize that he was still in the beginning of his career and was afraid to take risks, but he was supposed to be her friend.

Maybe she was wrong. Maybe she was looking down the wrong way. Maybe she was just, chasing rabbits. It wouldn't be the first time she'd let herself get too caught up in a theory. A ghost of a smile came across her face as she remembered her and Warrick disproving her spontaneous combustion theory. She rubbed at the tension in her temples. This case was getting to her, maybe she needed to take a few steps back and look at everything from a new perspective. She closed her eyes and ran the evidence, what little of it there was, through her head.

_In the foyer of Madison Daniel's home...A coat rack with a dark trench coat hung on it._

_The picture with the white dress._

_When Daniels had opened her drawer to get her day planner, there had been a card, a yellow library card...for the North Vegas branch of the Las Vegas Library_

_Witness Interviews:_

_She spoke to Madison Daniels..._

_We saw her walk off with that Senator lady..._

_Madison Daniels._

Madison Daniels.

Sara opened her eyes. There was no doubt in her mind. Now she just had to prove it to everyone else.

* * *

Eight o'clock in the morning saw Sara and Cami heading to Madison Daniel's campaign headquarters. Cami, who had her 'Dr. Parker' wardrobe on in full force. From the tips of her Jimmy Chu's to the gold rimmed glasses eyeglasses that she wore, she screamed PhD. It was a look that Grissom had never been quite able to pull off. It might have had something to do with the straw hat.  
They walked shoulder to shoulder, into the bustling hub of political trickery and looked around. A young, perky brunette at a flimsy table looked up and smiled at them. "How can I help you?" Sara instantly wished that she had clued Sofia in on this little adventure, her gold detective's badge held much more power then her Lab ID. "I'm Sara Sidle and this is Dr. Parker, we're with the LVPD, we're here to speak with Congressmen Daniels."

They were lead back to the women's office by the awestruck intern. The girl's knock was answered by a crisp, "Enter." They stepped into the room, without waiting for the girl to announce their presence. This office was much less intimate then her home office. It was done in a tasteful beige and a toned down red. The walls behind her desk were decorated with diplomas and citations as well as pictures of Daniels with people of importance, including the current Mayor of the city.  
She did not show surprise, no she was a cool customer. "Thank you, Emily." She waited for the girl to shut the door, and then she stood. "Well, well, Ms. Sidle, I didn't expect to see you again. Ever." Sara shrugged, "I have a few more questions." The woman didn't flinch. "And I have the Mayor on speed dial." Cami moved to intercept, "I apologies for Sidle's behavior. We've not met. I'm Dr. Cambridge Parker." Ever the politician, she took the offered hand. She tilted her head, "Parker, of the Seattle Parkers?" She nodded, "Yes." Daniels sat in her chair, "Please, take a seat. Now, you said your given name was Cambridge, that would make you Peter and Anita's third child?" Cami nodded, "Yes, London and Sydney, myself and Austin." Daniels smiled, "I know your brother, he's an up and comer in the House." Cami smiled, "That he is. He speaks highly of you, which is why I'd like to take care of this...unpleasantnesses for you." Daniels waved her hand in the air, as if clearing away a puff of smoke. "It's hardly a blip on the radar, really, just an annoyance. Though I admit, it disturbs me that some people would suspect me of hurting such innocent little girls."

Cambridge nodded and recrossed her legs. "Yes, it is a terrible thing to be accused of, a terrible thing to happen at all. Someone is kidnapping these poor girls and butchering them." Madison shook her head. "Yes, those girls, those poor girls. They say that they've been going with the killer voluntarily. If their parents had raised them better they might have had a chance." Cami nodded, "Yes, well, I've looked at a few of the parents. The Black girl's mother was a low-life and the rest..." Madison's blue eyes flickered, "And the rest were no better." She blinked, "Or so I heard." Cambridge nodded, "I heard you actually knew the Holloway twins." Daniels nodded sadly. "I heard they were found just last night."

Sara watched Cambridge work. She was quite the performer, part psychologist, part actress and once again, she was glad the woman was on their side. She wasn't sure exactly where Cami was taking this, but she had no doubt in her friend's skills.

"Their parents must be torn to pieces by all of this." Cami noted that Daniels hands clenched the edge of the desk. "I heard that their so-called parents weren't even in the state when the girls dissapeared." She sighed, "But at least they are in a better place."

Sara sat up straighter in her chair. "That's an odd thing to say, Ms. Daniels." The woman's head whipped around and for a split second, her facade dropped. The Senate-hopeful was replaced by a cold killer. "I didn't ask you." Just as quickly as it had come, it left and Daniels returned to her 'concerned politician' self. "If the LVPD was doing more about it, instead of interrogating innocent public servants, I'm sure they'd have a suspect already."

Cami moved to catch Sara to pull her back down, but Sara was too quick, like a bolt of lightning, she was on her feet, her hands planted on Daniels' desk. "How do you explain being at every girl's school and at that library. Or perhaps you'd like to tell me why we have images of you on CCTV from that library laying down a fucking dead body?" Daniels' reaction was swift and violent. Her fists crashed down on the solid wood of her desk. "YOU WILL WATCH YOUR TONE AND YOUR LANGUAGE, YOUNG LADY!" Cami's eyebrows shot up and she grabbed Sara's arm. "Christ, Sidle, sit down and cool it." She turned an apologetic face to Daniels. "I'm sorry." Back to Sara, Madison scowled, "Some of our parents taught us not to curse." Out of the corner of her eye, Cami saw a cruel smile. "If I had spoken like that when I was young, my mother would have washed my mouth out with soap." Madison sat back down in her chair. "But your mother didn't do that, did she, Sara S. Sidle? She was too busy drinking, smoking pot and stabbing your father to death."

Sara felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. "W-what?" She backed up until her knees hit the chair. Daniels smiled and coldly continued. "Some people don't deserve to have children, Sara. Some children are better off dead than they are in abusive homes, isn't that right?" She pulled a file out of her desk drawer. "Oh yes, you think I would have you in my home and then forget it. I know everything about you, Miss Sidle. Your PEAP Counseling, your suspension, your tragic past. Everything." She pulled out another, slightly thinner file. "And here is Detective Curtis's file. Not as dark as yours, but that near miss in the shooting. Well, she is a bit unstable isn't she?"

Sara sucked in a breathe. "I'm not going to stop. I know you killed those girls. I'll prove it." Daniels laughed, "Just like you proved who killed your colleague's ex husband, Sara?" Sara felt her heart lurch and she groped blindly behind her and sat down. "How do you know all this?" Daniels folded her fingers and rested her chin on them. "Power is a funny thing, Miss Sidle. It can get you information on everybody and everything in a snap." She snapped her manicured fingers to demonstrate her point. "To me, this looks like a last, rather desperate attempt to save your crumbling career. What, fucking your boss didn't help so you target a high profile case?"

Cami stood and Sara stood beside her. Sara, though shaken, stared down Daniels. "You won't get away with this." As they left, their backs almost all the way out the door, both women heard it. A low whisper that was laced with a dark amusement, "I already have."


	24. Chapter XXIII: Consequences

_Chapter XXIII_

_Consequences_

Cambridge Parker could handle the criminally insane, she had before and she was sure she would again. What she couldn't handle is the feeling of helplessness that washed over her when she saw Sara so pale and shaking. "Damn her. Damn her to hell."

Sara looked up from where she was leaning against the scorching hot metal of the SUV. "Is she the killer?" Cami threw the truck's door open. "Oh she did it and she's enjoying it and she won't stop until she's caught." Tears of frustration welled up behind her eyes and she blinked them back. "She's going to keep taking little girls and she's going to keep killing them. She thinks she would make a good mother but for some reason doesn't have children. She enjoys the power at the idea of ruling over a person's life so personally. Did you see how she enjoyed making you flinch?" Sara nodded and Cami noticed that the color was starting to return to her friend's face. "You've got the right person, Sara." She nodded. "Well, let us just get back to the crime lab and prove it."

Cami got into the car and Sara followed. She started the SUV. In her head, she was already calling to request information, specifically any open disappearances or murder cases in the Carson City and DC area.

That would come later, though. "You know that Grissom guy is weird, but smart. Really smart." Sara nodded, "He got you, huh?" She nodded. "I would really like to get him on my couch." Sara laughed out loud and Cami pushed her foot to the floor. "We'll go get some food first, then we'll save the world, Wild Woman."

* * *

They had halved a pizza, reminisced about their "glory days" at Harvard and by one o'clock when Sara returned to the Crime Lab alone, she was in a rather good mood. She had hours of work before her but she could taste the victory. She would get Madison Daniels and then she and Sofia were going on vacation. It was a snap decision, something that was completely out of character for her. Then, again, she'd gone against direct orders, called in an old friend for help and interrogated a psycho today. She deserved a vacation with her girl. That thought alone made her smile. She went into the building and waved at the receptionist. She did not notice that the receptionist did not wave back. She had Cami's case profile and a quick psych profile on Madison Daniels in a folder under her arm and if she wasn't mistaken, she smelled Greg's Blue Hawaiian brewing in the break room. 

She was thinking about stealing a savory cup when she heard her name. It was not being called out or even shouted. It was being bellowed. Bellowing was never good. She turned and saw the Mayor, the Sheriff and Conrad Ecklie bearing down on her.

"Shit."

* * *

Grissom watched them march Sara into the conference room and he saw the door slam in his face. It was locked. All he could do was watch through the frosted glass. 

The Sheriff opened the file that Sara had. "After I told you to leave Congressmen Daniels alone...after I specifically told you to drop it, YOU WENT BACK!" He slammed his fist on the table inches away from Sara's arm. "That woman is a pillar in this city. She's got power and she is not afraid to use it! She served two terms in Carson City as Lieutenant Governor and you are invading her home and her office!" He rubbed his hands over his face. "Christ, Sidle! Are you that fucking insane or just stupid?"

Sara scowled, "Madison Daniels killed those little girls. She is going to kidnap more and keep killing until we stop her!" Ecklie leafed through the pages. "I did not authorize any psychological evaluation or a profile." Sara squared her chin. "Good Samaritan." Cami had not put her name on anything, which would stall them long enough to allow her to get out of dodge. Ecklie slammed the papers on the table, "There is no evidence here, Sidle. I don't know what fantasy world you and the rest of the night shift lives in but the rest of us work the evidence! You're just jumping at shadows and smearing a good name!" Sara's spine went stiff and she stared Ecklie down. "I didn't know a good name was an excuse for murder, sir."

The mayor finally spoke. "Miss Sidle, this is inexcusable. You will leave Madison Daniels alone, period." He looked to the sheriff. "I want her off this investigation." The sheriff glared at Sara, "Unpaid leave, indefinitely, Sidle." He jerked open the door and came face to face with Grissom. "Not this time, Grissom." He pushed his way around the entomologist. The Mayor followed him. Ecklie looked from Sara to Grissom. "You can't help her now, Grissom. She's gone."

Sara stood up. For once, she was glad for her reputation as a "Grissom in the making" Her face revealed nothing, she didn't spare Ecklie a glance, but she did gather the files from the table and hand them to Grissom. "Make sure Catherine gets these."

She walked down the hall, making her way to the locker room. The lab techs watched her from behind their glass walls. They each turned their backs on her, even Archie and Wendy, they all separated themselves from her. As she drew closer to it, she saw the door to Catherine's office close, the door caught with a soft click and that was what made Sara wince. She was a pariah and no one would come to her aid. What was worse? She didn't blame them. She was not the great Gil Grissom, she was not the beautiful Catherine Willows or the good old boy Nick, or anyone. She was Sara Sidle, the outsider. That knowledge boiled in her stomach as she made her silent walk, her walk of shame.

Frustration, pain, fear, a wild mix of emotions thrashed inside of her. Wild and uncontrollable it burned through her like acid in her blood.

She slammed her locker door and threw the lock down in place. She stared at the dull metal in front of her. She didn't know how much longer she'd have this locker. She'd just been effectively fired. Her entire career had gone up in flames in front of her and she hadn't said a word in her own defense. A tear slid down her face and she wiped it away. She would not cry over this… this… this miscarriage of justice. She could get a job anywhere. She was an experienced CSI, a CSI III. She could go back to San Francisco or maybe to Seattle or anywhere. She could check out the FBI like she had thought about doing years ago. She could... No, she wanted to stay in Vegas. She had just straightened herself out again. She'd been in a good place. Then politics and power hungry pricks had taken it all away.

With her emotions spiraling out of control Sara indulged in something that she hadn't done since high school. Her fist balled tight and she lashed out against the metal. The crack of her flesh and bone on steel was a satisfying sound, so she did it again. Like a pro boxer in a title match, she punched the locker with wild abandon, oblivious to the pain. Her pain and anger flowed out of her through her fists. Violence was not supposed to be an answer, but it felt good right now.

Someone caught her fist as she pulled back for yet another blow. Sara jerked to a stop. Two strong arms came around her and she found herself caught up in Sofia's grasp. She let out a strangled sob.

A low voice whispered in her ear, "You're hurting yourself." Gentle hands took Sara's battered knuckles in her own. She pulled Sara closer to her, "You could've broken your hands, sweetie." Sara leaned back against Sofia. "I'm finished." Sofia lifted one of Sara's bleeding hands to her lips and kissed it. "You've not got a pink slip yet. We need to fix these hands before we do anything else." Sara opened her mouth to protest, but Sofia squeezed her and she fell silent. "I'm pretty sure I have a fist aid kit at home."

Author's Note: Et tu Catherine? Remeber when Nick was accused of murder and Catherine begged for time to prove him innocent? Or how in the _Strip Stranger_, the entire team sided with Grissom? Not so much here and now. Can it get worse? This is me you're dealing with, folks, of course it can. I would love to hear some feedback right about now, so if you've got a spare minuite or two, hit the button and tell me what you think.


	25. Chapter XXIV: Mine

Author's Note: **STOP, CEASE AND DESIST RIGHT NOW! PAUSE YOUR READING RIGHT THIS INSTANT!** Now that I have your attention...

I would like to reemphasize the fact that this story deals with a meaningful and loving relationship between two women. Sara and Sofia, specifically. The following chapter dances the line between borderline smut and defentite fluff. If, for whatever reason, you are offeneded by obvious displays of femeslash affection or implied sex of the same variety, give this chapter a pass and go to the next one. Why am I putting this here? Good question, I don't have an answer, but it's a damn good question.

_Chapter XXIV_

_Mine_

She knelt between Sara's knees. Beside her sat an open first aid kit. Between her steady hands were Sara's two beaten and bloody, but still beautiful hands. She kissed each knuckle and tenderly checked each finger for fractures.

Sara stared down at Sofia, her soft blonde was brushing against her thighs. Sara felt tears crawl up her throat. No one had ever made her feel so...special, so beautiful. She tugged her smarting hands out of Sofia's grasp.

Sofia looked up and met Sara's gaze. The other woman's dark and intense eyes were shining with unshed tears. "Sara?"

Sara bent her head and caught Sofia's lips in a soft kiss. Her hands delved into silky soft blonde hair. She heard Sofia's low throaty moan and that propelled her further, pushed her harder, it ignited their kiss and when Sara's eyes closed, she saw sparks in the darkness behind her lids.

Sofia, without breaking the kiss, moved her hands from their place on Sara's knees. They slid up Sara's thighs and up her sides. She moved up, subtly, slowly, smoothly until she was straddling Sara's thighs. Her hands found a comfortable grip on Sara's shoulders and she felt Sara's hands curl around her neck. Sofia was wrapped up in Sara - in her grasp, in her scent, in the very essence of the woman - and she didn't want to ever come up for air. That realization lit a fire in her and she did pull back. She ran a finger across Sara's jaw and pushed a strand of her dark hair back behind her ear. Their eyes were locked together, a deep sea blue and a mysterious chocolate brown. Sara's voice, husky with desire, broke their almost magical silence. "Sofia?" Sofia's thumb traced a path across Sara's bottom lip. They were standing on the edge of an abyss and she wanted to fall, but she didn't want to go alone. "Bed?" A smile spread across Sara's face, bright and beautiful and she leaned forward and kissed Sofia again. "Yes."

That started a passion-driven race through Sofia's tastefully decorated condo. They discarded articles of clothing one by one, spreading them haphazardly behind them. Sara's bra ended up hanging off the corner of a bookshelf and Sofia's pants were thrown towards the bedroom's doorway.

They came together, skin to skin, with all the heat of a volcano and the unstoppable power of a typhoon. Their touches were needy, their mouths greedy.

They were finally together and they embraced the beauty of the moment. Later, when the frantic first time had come and gone, their touches softened to slow caresses. Their passion did not dim, it just became sweeter, more involved and special.

When they were limp, spent and utterly satisfied, they collapsed together on the ravaged bed. Sofia pulled the sheet over their bodies and pressed a kiss to Sara's sweaty temple. Sara snuggled up against her, and both women were completely and blissfully happy. The day's worries, the week's frustrations and the dark ominous doubts of tomorrow were only distant blips on their radars.

* * *

Sara laid her head on Sofia's shoulder and reached for Sofia's hand. Their fingers intertwined and they lay together. Sara floated on that silver lined cloud that all women did when they had been truly made love to, and she smiled. She snuggled closer and pressed a kiss to Sofia's collar bone. She might just be in love with this woman.

* * *

Sofia awoke with the wonderful weight of Sara on her chest. The brunette's hair was fanned out on her bare shoulder and their hands were still linked. In the shadows of her bedroom, she took in the sight of a naked Sara. She was only half covered by the blue satin sheet and she looked like an angel, perfect in every way. Sleep took away all of the worry lines and fatigue from Sara's face. Sofia felt a tug in her gut and she knew that she would be spending a lot of time watching Sara sleep. Her lover...Her Sara. Yes, Sara Sidle was many things, a good friend, a genius scientist, a dedicated CSI, a beautiful woman. Her woman. Sara Sidle was hers and Heaven help if anyone tried to take her away. Sofia pulled Sara closer to her and pressed a kiss to Sara's cheek. As she surrendered once more to Morpheus's pull, her last thought was 'mine'. 

Author's Note 2.0: You all have no idea how long it took me to write this. It's the opposite of angst, so it was challenging. I hope you guys liked it... Review...pretty please.


	26. Chapter XXV: Terror

_Chapter XXV_

_Terror_

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. The angrier she became, the blacker her thoughts got. Before her, spread out like a third rate manuscript on an editor's desk, were the files she'd requested and gotten with no questions asked. Sara Sidle had hurt her where it hurt, her reputation. Therefore, she would strike back, where it would hurt Sara the most.

* * *

Tricia, Jessica and Lindsey walked from their Math class to the auditorium. There was supposed to be some extra special presentation thingy today. Lindsey was pretty sure she'd be more excited about dangerous and unnecessary surgery without anesthesia. It was mandatory, though, and she was already grounded _and_ she did not need her mother to get a call at work...again.

They sat in the darkened auditorium at the back, their illegal cellphones out and ready to text. The screen that was set up behind the podium on stage flickered to life and the lights went out. Lindsey blinked, trying to make her eyes adjust. The speakers boomed and the screen was suddenly filled with rapid fire images of missiles firing, of illegal immigrant protests, and of gay couples. A strong voice echoed through the auditorium. "There are a lot of issues to deal with today and who the people vote for will be making those ground breaking decisions." A woman stepped out from behind the curtains on stage.

The presentation was aimed directly at the mindset of the gathered middle school students. Even the discussion of how elections were counted and tallied was presented in a way that captured the imagination and interest of the shortest attention span.

It didn't make Lindsey want to become a politician, but it was interesting. At least, more interesting then she figured it would be. This Madison Daniels chick was all right. Her flunkies were handing out pamphlets for them to take home to their parents. Lindsey rolled her eyes. There was the entire reason behind the hour long yak-fest - 'Get your parents to vote for me'. Sam had told her that all politicians were interested in only votes and money. And since he, of course, was interested only in money, she figured that they couldn't all be that bad. She knew her Social Studies teacher was paying attention to who was paying attention and she really needed to pull off a good grade this time round or her mother was going to kill her. So when Q&A time came around, she raised her hand.

* * *

Madison looked over the crowd. There was so much potential, and there was of course, trash mixed in too. She looked around when hands raised. There were the ever present brown nosers, the interested people and then a few others who were probably raising their hands as a joke or a desperate attempt for extra credit.

She fielded the usual questions. What did she think about the war, what was her stance on immigration, a few others. Then a blonde girl in back stood. "You um mentioned a bill going through congress right now. About um meth labs. You didn't mention anything about support staff or possible contamination of scene workers. Does the bill cover that?"

* * *

Half of the auditorium turned to look at her. Since her teacher was in that group, Lindsey decided that her effort had been worth it. There were some upsides to having a mom in law enforcement. She got to hear about things like that. There had been a scare a few weeks before. Greg had inhaled some meth at a scene. Her mother had remarked that it hadn't made him that different.

* * *

Daniels raised an eyebrow, she had never gotten that question. It was smart and it challenged her from a new angle. The girl was rather petite and had shoulder length blonde hair. Madison was intrigued.

* * *

Lindsey was heading back to her locker when someone called her name. She turned and winced. It was the principal. She cursed under her breathe and ran a hand over her blonde hair. Jessica and Tricia, great friends that they were, ducked into the girl's room.

Lindsey put on what her grandfather called the 'Willows Grin' and turned to face the principal. "Yes, Ms. Lewis?"

Then she noticed that the principal had the Senator woman with her. Lindsey did a little 'panic dance' on the inside, but held her ground. "Principal Lewis, Senator Daniels."

The blonde woman laughed, "I'm not senator yet, but you may call me Madison, young lady." Lindsey fell in step beside the two adults and Madison continued. "You had a very interesting question, Lindsey." She only shrugged, "I heard my mother talking about it."

Madison smiled; it was a bright smile full of warmth; a practiced smile that a politician would have. It was her eyes, though, that spoke her true intent. It was her eyes that Lindsey saw. Lindsey backed up a step. "Yeah, well, I've gotta head to class...English, you know." Madison grinned, "Running to your lessons? That doesn't sound like any young girl I've ever met. I'd really like to talk to you for a few minutes."

The principal nodded and her eyes telegraphed that Lindsey would talk to the politician and she would behave herself while doing so. So Lindsey harnessed one of her other Mother-given tools. She used the world famous Willows charm. "Sure. I was really interested in your ideas about Big Tobacco."

Madison smiled, "Perfect."

They continued walking, through the grassy quad and then down the hill to where the cars were. "Where are we going?"

The woman smiled, "Didn't your principal tell you? We're shooting a campaign commercial and I think you'd be perfect for it." Lindsey's fair eyebrows shot up. "Me? On TV?" Madison reached the white limo and opened the door for her. "Oh yes."

Lindsey got in, "Cool."

* * *

Catherine had the mother of all headaches. The added stress of taking up Sara's weight of the case was taking its toll on her. She rubbed her temples and decided to not think about Sara. She didn't like admitting that she felt guilty. She'd known that Sara was going off and chasing down Daniels...but she hadn't said anything. She'd let the woman twist in the wind. She didn't want to feel bad about that. Sara was a big girl, she had known going in was going against orders. Grissom couldn't help her this time. She didn't know why it bothered her so much. It wasn't like she even liked Sara all that much. Everyone thought she was so great, just because she never gave up, because she was this rock that everyone looked to.

She was Nick's little sister and Warrick's new best friend; she was Greg's mentor and Grissom's student. She was like a daughter to Brass. She had come into their lab, their lives, as a stranger and somewhere along the way, she'd become their friend. No, not everyone. Catherine could admit, to herself, that she had never been Sara's friend and last night when she'd closed her door, she'd shown that she never could be.

She was shaken from her thoughts by the school bell. Students began to pour out and she started looking for Lindsey. After five minutes she was slightly annoyed. After fifteen she was starting to get pissed. Lindsey knew they had plans this afternoon. She got out of the car and started making her way through the loitering students. "LINDSEY!" She made her way over to the teacher that was on monitor duty. "I'm looking for Lindsey Willows." The teacher, who looked fresh out of college, hardly more then a girl herself, took out a walkie talkie and asked if any of the other teachers had seen her. A full thirty minutes after school let out, the razor sharp edges of panic started to cut into Catherine's soul. She called her daughter's cell phone and got no answer. She called her mother, her father, her sister; she even called Grissom. No one had seen Lindsey. An hour had passed and Catherine was hyper-ventilating.

Fear sliced through her entire being like a fiery broadsword.

Lindsey-was-missing. Catherine couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't function. Her hands shook violently, her world swirled around her and all coherent thoughts drained from her brain.

Her-baby-was-missing. She leaned against the wall as the principal talked to her. The woman's words were only a buzz in her head. Her cell phone slipped from her hands and clattered to the floor. When Brass arrived she looked at him, tears clouding her vision. She could only croak out one word, "Lindsey."

She had been kidnapped. That thought shot through theLindsey'sbrain like an electric shock. Everything had been normal. Then when they'd gotten into the limo, all the doors had locked and everything had gone very still. That look in Madison's eyes was back. Lindsey tried the door handle. The woman only smiled. "It's okay, Lindsey, we're going home." Suddenly she understood. There was a scary realization and it spilled from her lips, "You're the Doll Collector."

No matter how she fought, she couldn't break the woman's grip. She tried to pull away when they pulled in to the garage. "NO!" She pulled her down a set of stairs and pushed her by the boxes into a room. All Lindsey could think of were those news reports. Dead girls...dead girls and she was next. The door of the room shut and Lindsey pushed against it. She beat her fists against it. Tears started coming down her cheeks. She didn't want to die. She wanted her Mommy.

Author's Note: Okay, who wasn't expecting that? I dropped anvil sized hints the whole time. We all knew this was coming. Now, I would also like to point out - Look, Catherine feels guilty, I'm making her human! Comments?


	27. Chapter XXVI: The Darkest Hour

_Chapter XXVI_

_The Darkest Hour_

They slept late, a novel thing for both of them, and they spent the late morning and early afternoon curled up together in the bed, talking. The ringing phones that they both had been, on some level, expecting to hear, came at four o'clock. Sofia smirked and untangled herself from Sara, "All good things must come to an end." She slid out of the bed and made her way to the doorway where her pants had been discarded. She grabbed the cellphone off them and flipped it open. "Curtis."

Sara had known the phone was going to ring. She knew that the safety of her haven with Sofia would eventually be invaded. She knew that reality would eventually push its way back in. She watched Sofia walk, mesmerized by the gentle sway of her hips. Oh, yes, the swagger was definitely better when there were no clothes to restrict it. When Sofia's entire body went rigid, though, Sara knew something was wrong. All the blood drained out of her face and she disconnected the call. Sara sat up, sheet pulled tight to her chest. "What is it?"

Sofia could barely push the words out of her throat. "Lindsey. She took Catherine's daughter."

For a brief moment, everything stopped. Sara blinked once, twice, three times. It was an explosion in her mind, it numbed her to the bone. "Oh God." Her own words pushed her to action and she sprang from the bed. The fact that she'd been thrown from the case was unimportant. She had to help save Lindsey.

* * *

Catherine sat in the lounge, her cold hands wrapped around a hot cup of Greg's coffee. People were asking her questions, moving around her, working the case. Any other time she'd be right in the middle of everything, working. Now, though, she was empty and strangely cold. All she could see was Lindsey with her throat cut, her daughter dead. She didn't know what to do. Years of CSI work, years of helping mothers through just this sort of thing, and she didn't know what to do for herself. There was no culvert this time, no jumping in to save her daughter. There was nothing to do but wait. A sob caught in her chest. Wait until they found the body.

* * *

Sara bulldozed past two day shift workers, she didn't know their names, nor did she care at this point. She almost ran through the hallways. She had to find Lindsey. That was the mantra that kept repeating through her head. She couldn't fail this time. She had to save her. She caught a flash of red-gold through the break room windows and she stopped in her tracks. Catherine. She went to the door, the room was empty, save for the other woman. 

She sat on the same couch as Lindsey had just a few nights before. Catherine was pale, and her hands shook. Her makeup, usually flawless, was ruined.

Sara's heart lurched and the voices inside her head screamed at her. This was her fault. "Catherine?"

* * *

Catherine looked up and saw Sara standing in the doorway to the lounge. What was once empty quickly filled with rage, white hot and viscous. 

"You."

Sara's eyes were cast down at the floor. "Catherine I am so sor-"

Catherine stood up, and glared at the other woman. "Don't you dare apologize to me."

Sara looked up, "Cath, I..."

Catherine came closer until they were standing nose to nose. "This is all your fault. If you had worked the case instead of chasing rabbits, followed the evidence instead of thinking about your career, you would have caught the fucking bastard who's doing this. THIS IS YOUR FAULT!"

Catherine's hands lashed out and shoved Sara. She didn't fall but she stumbled backwards. "MY DAUGHTER IS AS GOOD AS DEAD AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!" Catherine's face had gone from white to red and her blue eyes were hard and they flashed with an almost unholy anger. Scalding hot tears poured down the woman's face as she continued, she wasn't screaming anymore but her voice was still hot and razor sharp. "You think you're better then everyone else. That the rules don't apply to you. Grissom's little pet. Everything just rolls right off your back. My Lindsey is missing and you think an apology is good enough! I'll never forgive you. Never. I don't want you near me or the case. You are incompetent, but I never thought that you would let a child killer run rampant so you could be the press's golden girl. My daughter's blood is on your hands."

Catherine's breathes were coming in wheezes and gasps. "Get away from me, Sidle."

Sara, brown eyes wide, didn't move. "Catherine, please."

Catherine's fingers gripped the mug tightly between her hand and she threw it at the floor, hard. The ceramic shattered at Sara's feet, sending coffee and broken pieces everywhere. "GO!"

Hand over her mouth, fighting back tears, Sara stumbled backwards and she fled.

Catherine blindly groped for the wall and slid down against it, the tears coming down fast, the sobs wracking her body.

Both women had a single thought in their minds, 'It's all my fault.'

Author's Note: Yeah, when I look back at everyone's reaction to 'Consequences' I knew I would be in trouble over this one...Bring on the yelling, I like feedback, even if people are throwing things at me. Though, in my defence, Cath threatened to kill Candeece the Singer in _Lady Heather's Box_...so Sara is kind of getting off easy.

Put this chapterup earlier then usual...not because I was feeling nice and generous...I just know that I will be otherwise occupied for the rest of the day... Translation, I will be far too intoxicated to use a computer this evening.


	28. Chapter XXVII: Lean on Me

_Chapter XXVII_

_Lean on Me_

Warrick and Sofia heard about it only minutes after it had happened. The story spread through the lab like a wild fire. Catherine had all but attacked Sara and Sara had fled.

They met as they both jogged down the hall. They did not speak, but the frenzied pace they shared told them each that they were feeling the same pain. They were hurting because their woman was hurting.

Catherine was sitting on the floor, surrounded by spilled coffee and pieces of shattered ceramic. She was curled up with her head hidden in her knees. Her entire body shook with sobs.

* * *

Warrick's heart gave a thump and a jerk. He had never seen Catherine look so lost and broken. He knelt down beside her. He didn't know what to do. Didn't know what to say. He put his arm around her and pulled her close to him, putting her head against his shoulder. She whimpered, as if she was going to complain or protest. He shushed her. Catherine leaned against him, resting her weight against him. Giving everything over to him. He shifted around and put one of his arms under her knees and lifted her up. He walked her over to the couch, and he sat down. He held her close, in a half-sitting, half-lying position, on his lap. He ran his hand through her red gold hair. Every tear that fell, cut into him, every shudder burned like fire. He wanted to take the pain away. He wanted to protect Catherine from everything. He couldn't do any of that, and that was what hurt him the most. She clung to him, though, held fast to him like he was her last line of defense. He ran his hands over her hair and whispered nonsense to her, trying to calm her down. 

Lindsey was Catherine's world. Her sun and stars, her alpha and her omega. Catherine had once said, and he believed it, that she would give her life or take a life to protect her daughter. He would do the same for Catherine. Lindsey was a fighter, though, a scrapper like her mother. She had more than a fighting chance against this psycho.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'll find her, Cath, I'll find her."

Catherine looked up at him, her beautiful blue eyes were bloodshot and rimmed with puffy red lids and sticky black mascara. "'Rick." He smiled at her, "There's my girl." She leaned against him, her head tucked under his chin. "What am I gonna do?" He squeezed her tight against her body, "I don't know, Cath, but I will find your daughter, I swear to you, I'll find her."

Catherine pulled in a shuttering breath. "It's my fault, 'Rick. It's my fault. I'm her mother. I should have protected her. I should have protected her. I don't what I'll do without her. I can't..." She started sobbing again, the horror filled, heart breaking sobs of a woman who had truly lost everything.

Warrick felt a tear of his own slide down his cheek. "I'm here for you, Cath, I'm here for you. Lean on me, Babe, lean on me."

* * *

Sofia knew where Sara had gone. It was almost an instinct. She was in the morgue, staring at the dead Holloway twins. She was not crying, but her big brown eyes were wide and haunted and her skin was as pale as the corpses before her. "Sara?" Sara didn't turn around; she kept staring at the dead girls. Sofia reached out and put her hand on the other woman's shoulder. Sara jerked away and put one hand on each of the steel tables that held the corpses. 

"I wanted to be a doctor, once. Did I ever tell you that?" Sara did not wait for an answer, she continued. "I was in my second year, doing an early internship. I was so interested, dedicated, enthralled by medicine. The inner workings of the human body fascinated me. I wanted to use my knowledge to help people. To help kids. I was going to be a pediatrician. I was doing an ER rotation when it happened." Sofia listened to Sara's voice; it was steady and almost monotone. The pain beneath the cool veneer though, that was intense and soul destroying. She didn't know where this story was going, but she listened. She listened with a morbid fascination.

"There was a bus wreck. A tractor trailer hit a school bus. It was a mass-cal. We had to do triage on children. Triage, it's so clinical, logical, ruthless. Work on those you can save first, leave the DOAs and the hopeless and let the ones who could wait...let them wait in agony." Sara's voice was haunted; it had the same tones as a soldier who was relieving their time on the front. "Thirty kids, thirty kids and we saved seven. Seven out of thirty." Sara's voice trembled, but it did not break. Her eyes shone with tears, but they did not fall. "The James Madison Elementary School. Back then, I had a room mate. She was an accountant and her daughter was a first grader at James Madison. She was on that bus, Little Anna. She was so young...she was so hurt. I tried so hard. We had to crack her chest I had my hands inside a six year olds chest, trying like a mad woman to keep her little heart pumping. She was one of the twenty-three we couldn't save. One of my failures. That day blurred into a bloody parade of dead children. One after another. I went from trauma room to trauma room for hours, only stopping to change my gloves and pull fresh scrubs on.

I thought it was all over when I pulled the last sheet over the last loss. A little boy with red hair, his name was Eric.

Then Malory came in, looking for Anna. I had to tell her...I had to tell her that Anna had died. That I failed her. I had let Anna die." Sara's eyes were fixed on a far off spot, unfocused and the guilt in them took over the warm brown. "She screamed at me. Why hadn't I saved her baby? In the precious few hours I had off, I'd babysat Anna, helped her with her numbers and letters. I loved that little girl. I failed her. I failed her and Malory. I swore to myself I'd never fail like that again."

Sara sighed and shook her head. "I couldn't cut it after that. I lost my nerve. I went to work in the morgue, stayed there. I started working in Forensics, I found a new way to help victims. I couldn't rescue them in life, but I would be their voice after it. I would bring them peace and justice. I believed in that, had to believe in it. I threw myself into work. Made myself forget about my past, about Anna. It almost worked...until Eddie died."

Eddie, Sofia knew, had been Catherine's husband.

"Eddie died and Lindsey was caught in the car. Catherine was frantic. I couldn't solve the case. I wanted to. I tried so hard. There just wasn't enough...there's never enough. I'm never good enough, not when it counts. This time, though, this time I failed...I...it's my fault. It's my fault Lindsey was taken. Catherine hates me. She hates me and I don't blame her, can't blame her. I failed again...and I don't know if I can put myself back together again, not again."

Sara shuddered violently and Sofia stepped up close behind the other woman. She wrapped her arms around Sara's borderline-too-thin waist and pulled her back against her own body and held on to her tight. "This isn't your fault, Sweetie. We're going to find her. We'll find Lindsey, I swear it. It's not your fault. I'm here, Sara. I'm here for you. Let me take care of you, lean on me, Love."

Author's Note: Catherine is a bit out of sorts at the moment. Good thing for her Warrick is a rock and blah blah blah fluffy stuff.

There's that Dr. Sara thing again. You didn't think I forgot about that did you? Plus, if you wondered about the nightmare in the prologue, there is your answer. Sara connects too well with children, her lame excuse of "kids don't like me" has not fooled me a bit. Plus, there is why Sara became a CSI. Grissom's bug lecture did not change her life, she did. I hate that 'Grissom changed my life' angle SO much.

Another early chapter. I've not forgotten my usual schedule, I prefer it actually. Unfortunatly, my lovley employers don't much care about my personal schedule.


	29. Chapter XXVIII: Second Place Hearts

_Chapter XVIII_

_Second Place_ _Hearts_

"Lean on me, Babe."

She heard about it almost as soon as it had happened. She left the test running and she went as quickly as she could. Catherine was in the break room, sobbing against Warrick's chest.

It should not have hurt her, but it did. It was a deep hurt, an ache that would stay with her for a long time. Wendy Simms watched Warrick Brown comfort Catherine Willows. He was there for her in the beautiful woman's hour of need. She had turned to him for support and comfort. She turned her back on the break room and on the couple. There was no room for her there.

She had known from the beginning. What she and Catherine had, it wasn't serious, and it wasn't built to last. They hadn't been partners, or even a couple really. They'd been fuck-buddies. She had been a comfort-lay for Catherine. A warm body to fill an empty bed, nothing more. Crudely put, she had been one step up from Catherine's hand.

It shouldn't hurt. It did though. She went back to the DNA lab. Sheets spit out of the printer and electronic blips and beeps sounded off, results that needed her attention. None of it permeated Wendy's senses.

She'd been swept away by the fantasy of a relationship with Catherine Willows. From her 'bitch heels' to the down right sexy reading glasses, Catherine was a Venus. She had a perfect body, and a beautiful smile. She was smart, kind and witty. She had an aura about her, power and sex appeal. She was the entire package plus some. A dream given form. Hard core investigator and loving mother. Good friend and an amazing lover. She had ensnared Wendy's senses and captured her attention from the very first time they'd met. She'd been caught by Catherine's bewitching spell and had happily followed her pied piper's lead.

Maybe it wasn't her fault, Wendy rationalized. How could anyone not fall at least a little bit in love with Catherine Willows? Catherine had grabbed her by the heart and, just like the cup on the floor of the lounge, she had shattered it.

She understood how a wonder-struck hooker felt when her 'caring' John left to go home to his wife and children. She couldn't blame Catherine. She loved her too much to do that. No, Catherine had never pretended that it was anything but casual and Wendy had played along. She should have known better, but she couldn't say no. Her heart had been half in when they had started. Now she would just have to collect the pieces and try to move on.

The tests kept coming in, results kept popping up, emails needed to be answered, phone calls needed to be picked up. It all passed by Wendy. She rested her head in her hands and in the DNA lab, she allowed herself to cry. She cried not for what she had lost, but for what she had never had.

* * *

"Lean on me, Love." 

Sofia's words, though directed at the woman wrapped in her arms, hit him like a train going full speed. How had he missed it? Sara and Sofia? There was no mistaking the evidence. Sofia had Sara wrapped in her arms. It was something that he himself had always been too afraid to do. He'd always been too afraid to take that step. That final step from friendship to intimacy.

Love was not simple, it was not logical, it was not predictable. It was a messy state of affairs that he had tried to convince himself he did not need.

He understood now, how Arthur had felt, when he saw Guinevere in Lancelot's arms. Like the mythical King, he had claimed a beautiful queen for his own and brought her to his Camelot. He had made the same mistake, though; he had left her to fend for herself. Cold and alone, she had found a knight in shining armor to champion her, to love her with a passion that he could never truly give her.

He had damned Sara to a life of loneliness and cold science. Sofia brought her love and warmth. How could he compete and how could he complain? Like a foolish gardener he'd left his rare and beautiful rose bush alone and untended, but like all strong and beautiful things do, it had found its own path up the trellis and had bloomed anyway.

He left them there, in the morgue; there was no room for him there. He found himself at a loss. He wandered the labs that he had called home for so long. He found himself circling back to her, though.

Gilbert Grissom stared down at her desk. It sat in the crowded and chaotic bullpen that all the CSIs without their own offices shared. There were little bits of Sara scattered across it. In the corner, almost hidden between the 'in' and 'out' boxes was a small collage style picture frame. One picture was of Sara, Nick, Warrick and Greg. He wasn't sure when it had been taken, but he was not surprised by its presence. The next picture, though, did surprise him. It was of Sara and a young girl. They were both dressed as pirates. It took him a few moments to place the face. The white blonde hair and the haunted eyes behind the costume finally clicked through. Sara had taken Brenda Collins trick-or-treating. The third photo was of a younger Sara and Dr. Parker. They were tan and smiling. They had Marti-Gras beads around their necks and half-empty Hurricanes in their hands. The fourth and final picture hurt him just a little bit more. It was of Sara and Sofia, together. They were standing in front of a giant Ferris wheel and Sofia had a stuffed bear tucked under her arm and Sara's hand in hers.

He glanced around and looked at the rest of the desk. The picture was too painful to dwell on for too long. A half sheet of notebook paper was covered in her complicated and scrawled shorthand. Notes that only Sara could de-code and understand. Her month-at-a-glance calendar also had some note and her days off were boldly marked and even occasionally highlighted.

Finally in the middle of the desk there was a folder and inside it were the photocopied pictures of the girls who had been killed.

He returned to his office and shut the door. Grissom could hear the scampering and other subtle sounds of the insects that he tended to. There was paperwork scattered haphazardly across his desk and his answering machine flashed obnoxiously at him. He took off his glasses and rubbed at the painful headache.

He wasn't crying, but Gilbert Grissom was in mourning. Not for what he had lost, but for what he had thrown away.

Author's Note: Wendy has been exeptionally hard to write. I've not really seen enough of the sixth season to get a good hold on her. As some people guessed earlier, she fell for Catherine. Big teary-eyed 'aaw' for Wendy. Please note, this is not Cath bashing. Catherine thought it was casual. Had she known Wendy really did have a THING for her, she would have let her down easily or something.

I am not good with Grissom. I don't like him, sorry, but 'tis the truth. I don't like GSR (like that's a news flash) but this scene needed to be written. I tried to climb in his head and grope around a bit, I hope everyone likes it.

Additionally, it was pointed out to me that Sara's doctor-story had a big gaping hole of non-sensical rambling in it. She was not in her second year of Med-School, she was in the second year of her Residency, which comes after. I will eventually go back and change that, but for now I'll do a patch-job later on down the road to explain that whole thing a bit more clarity and less 'pulling it out of thin air'


	30. Chapter XXIX: On The Brink

_Chapter XXIX _

_On The Brink_

Saturday

12:00 p.m.

Channel 5 Action Now News Saturday Edition carried the press conference all across the Vegas area and CNN spread it across the rest of the nation and eventually the world. Another girl was missing, this time one of LVPD's own and there was still no lead.

Sam Braun offered a five million dollar reward the return of Lindsey Willows, publicly. Privately the man had ordered out all of his people and had called in every favor he was owed. He wanted his granddaughter back, by any means: legal, illegal and anywhere in between.

The Sheriff offered his assurances that the search was on.

The Mayor offered empty condolences.

Maria Rymer delved into the meat and potatoes of the story, her relentless questions cut into the heart of the case.

It was not, however, any of the powerful figures of the law enforcement, city government or media that had the most impact. The loose semi-circle of women, of mothers who had lost their children, was what tugged at heart strings. Moira Holloway was their voice, but the message was truly written in the tear ravaged faces and haunted eyes of all of the mothers. Carrol Winters, Amy Black, Frances Thompson and Moira Holloway, their stories sent a chill down the spine of Vegas - protect your daughters. Catherine Willows was notably absent from the press conference. Whispers and rumors moved through the media and the public, wild accusations, fear, paranoia.

Standing behind the mothers was another presence. The woman did not speak, nor was she investigating or reporting on the crimes. She was, nevertheless, the silent centerpiece of the chaos. She was a pillar of strength for the other women, each looked to her, as if for reassurance...or permission. The striking woman's placid, almost frigidly stoic, face gave nothing away, but her hand often strayed to the ornate silver and onyx cross that she wore. A slight breeze, carrying the dry kiss of the desert ruffled her red hair and she tilted her head ever so slightly, listening to the questions and reactions of the crowd. Through her efforts, and those she helped, Vegas would never forget the victims of the Doll Collector.

Sara watched the press conference from her apartment. She was alone, and emotionally drained. Channel 5 cut to commercial and Sara sighed.  
A commercial flickered on.

"_Nevada is my home and I love it." _  
_The camera panned over the rocky desert, the very dignified government buildings of the capital, over the sparkling waters of Lake Mead and finally, the Strip in all of it's neon glory._  
_A string of credentials began listing and then the screen was filled with the smiling face of Madison Daniels. _  
"_I've always fought for our children, for families and for safety. Elect me to the Senate this fall so I can help build a better tomorrow."_

Sara turned off the television, physically sickened by the false face of Madison Daniels. The thin, but incredibly glossy veneer of "dedicated stateswoman" didn't cover up the barely controlled violence and psychoses that truly made Madison Daniels who she was. Not in Sara's eyes anyway. The woman thought she could get away with murder, and unfortunately, it looked like she could be right. Power and politics apparently trumped crime and punishment in Las Vegas. Ironically, the words of another murderess floated through Sara's mind.

"_I ask that you seek justice. Not for me, not for his honor, not even for Shelly Daniels. I ask because justice demands it. Justice is greater then our personal feelings; than revenge, than pity. Do not shrink, do not disappoint, but rather embrace it." _

Melissa Winters, former ADA and current guest of the Nevada Women's Correctional Facility. She had killed her abusive husband and had become paralyzed when he had fired back at her. Sara had wanted to bring Melissa Winters justice. Justice for her husband, for the loss of her legs, for many things. Instead, she had brought Melissa Winters to justice, and to peace. Sara knew it was preposterous, but she wondered what the wheelchair-bound attorney would say about Madison Daniels and the case. This had been just the kind of case that the woman would have dove into. They would have pieced together her attack, building it layer by layer until Daniels didn't have a leg to stand on. Unfortunately, Melissa was serving a life sentence and Sara was off of the case.

Not that being officially taken off a case had ever stopped the members of the Night Shift before. Grissom's brush with death while working the Strip Strangler case was a testament to that. Of course everyone had supported Grissom. He'd had Nick, Warrick, Catherine and herself behind him. She had no one. She couldn't ask for help from anyone at the lab, not that they would say yes, but that was beside the point. She couldn't ask Brass or Sofia for help, for exactly the other reason. They would help her and she could not risk their careers too. Cami had already helped her too much as it was. From profiling the case under the table to pulling strings to have the Feds check for matching crimes in Carson City and Washington D.C. No, Sara decided, she was alone. It was not the first time she'd been on her own, and sadly enough, she doubted it would be her last.

She paced her small living room, waiting for some kind of an idea or plan to come to mind.

* * *

Quantico, Virginia

Saturday

12:30 p.m.

Assistant Director Leonardo Johnson shook his head and once again wondered why he was in his office on his day off wading through VICAP reports. Cambridge Parker, that was why. The woman was as intoxicating as she was intelligent. When she called in a favor, you didn't just do it, you dropped everything to do it right then. That was, of course, not to mention that he owed her his left nut for her help on the Westbrook case.

Sure, he'd heard the hub-bub about Vegas's Doll Collector, but until the killer moved along, it was Vegas's problem. That was, of course, unless they asked for help. They had not, so his hands were tied. In the current situation of viscous territoriality wrapped up in faux open-mindedness and cooperation, he could not just barge in and take a case, not without a damn good reason. He wouldn't send his people to Vegas to get frozen out and resented. Especially with Gil Grissom's people on the case. The FBI still had egg on it's face from the Strip Strangler fiasco.  
He ran his hand through his hair. It still had the thickness of his youth, though years of staring into the evil minds of killers had turned brown gray. His mouth was set in an impatient thin line as he waited for the computer to spit out the results. When it beeped, he downsized the E-Bay and looked at the results. He jerked his hand through his hair. "Oh fuck." He fumbled for his phone and started dialing numbers from memory. Three matching cases in Carson City and five right across the way in Washington D.C. He'd just found eight very good reasons to send his people to Vegas.

Within that hour, he had his two best Agents in the air, heading towards Sin City and the field office alerted and on their way to the LVPD to brief the detectives. He frowned at the page, Cami's note had said to call some CSI if he found anything. He shrugged and started dialing the scrawled the number. If Cambridge Parker trusted this Sidle woman, then she must be good. Then again, if Sidle worked under Grissom, she was probably one of the best; Gilbert Grissom only worked with those he saw potential in.

* * *

Las Vegas, Nevada

1:24 p.m.

Sara had thought, brooded, stewed, and had exhausted all of her mental processes trying to figure out how to get at Daniels without being thrown in jail. She was quickly coming to her wit's end. She'd gone from 'What would Grissom do?' to 'What would Batman do?' That definitely signaled that she was getting a little bit desperate. Of course, it was Lindsey out there, facing down death. Sara decided that these were desperate times.

She was ready to climb the walls. She hated that she couldn't do anything. She didn't even have her notes. She was utterly helpless. It was, she figured, a mere shadow of what Catherine must be feeling. The thought of her colleague sent a sharp pain through her chest and she had to swallow the bile that had climbed out of her sour stomach.

She was staring at the cabinet that she knew held her "emergency" stash of Tequila when the phone rang. She contemplated not answering, she contemplated ignoring the world and finding solace in the bottle. She picked up the phone, steeling herself for the news that Lindsey had been found dead and it was her fault.  
"Sidle."

There was a slight pause and then a familiar voice began speaking in a heavy New Jersey accent. "CSI Sidle, this is Assistant Director Johnson with the FBI. I ran the specs Dr. Parker gave me through VICAP and our CASMIRC database, focusing on Carson City..."

Impatience ate through her nerves, "And?" She interrupted the federal agent. She no longer had to worry about inter-agency friendliness. The man grunted, "There were three matching cases in Carson City in the given time line and five in DC. The reports indicate that five girls were killed..." Sara sighed, "Another was taken." There was another grunt. "I've got people on the way out there and the field office is sending over agents to debrief your people."

Sara nodded, "Of course. Thank you Assistant Director."

She terminated the call and stood in the middle of her living room, phone held in her hand, hands against her chest. Her heart was beating frantically. If Daniels caught wind of the FBI coming in, she would kill Lindsey. To send a message, if nothing else. Sara had to get to Lindsey before the news of the FBI reached the public. She remembered the press conference and the constant updates. There was a leak somewhere, which meant that she had precious little time. There was a time for Grissom's methodical science and careful planning, and there was a time for action.

_Do not shrink, do not disappoint, but rather embrace it." _

With Melissa's words ringing in her ears, Sara grabbed her keys and her service weapon.


	31. Chapter XXX: The Calvary

_Chapter XXX_

_The Calvary_

Las Vegas 1:32 p.m.

There was a thin layer of white powder around the trim of the room. At first, Lindsey had thought it might have been flecks of paint, or perhaps rat poison. "Mad"ison had informed her that it was actually limestone powder, apparently, it kept the cellar cool or free from rodents, or something. Lindsey hadn't actually listened when the woman was talking, she'd been looking at the door she'd come through. There was not a knob on her side, but there was on the outside, along with a bolt and what looked like a chain as well. So kicking down the door was not an option. Okay, so that had never been an option. She didn't even weigh a full hundred pounds, but the idea of kicking down the door was satisfying.

Lindsey had gone beyond terror; this whole ordeal took her right back to her Daddy's car on that God-Awful night in the culvert. Then she'd cried like a baby, she didn't want to die. Then she'd moved on to anger and she'd stayed there. Had Sam been there, he'd probably have said that she was too much of a Willows to not be mad. She knew that her Mom was looking for her. So was Warrick and Nicky, Greggo, Mr. Grissom and even Sara. All she had to do was keep the crazy woman calm long enough for them to find her. In her weaker hours, she lamented that they would never find her on time, that she would end up just another picture on the wall.  
One of the walls had pictures on it, all in matching frames, all lined up like soldiers. Lindsey recognized some of the girls, they'd been from Vegas. Others she did not. All she knew about them was that they too had blonde hair and blue eyes. There were all dressed alike, in white dresses with black shoes...and in the pictures, they were all dead. They lay on the frilly bed, the one that she refused to sleep on, with their necks cut and their eyes wide open in terror.

The pictures, while they were the centerpiece of the room's decorations, were not the only things to look at. Stuffed animals took up one whole corner of the room. She had, for a brief moment, thought about hiding herself in them, but had disregarded that idea quickly when she'd found a big red stain on one of the teddy bears, it had been blood. She'd not touched the animals again. There were some books, but none that really appealed to her, and none heavy enough to use as any kind of weapon. Most of them were old text books, like from the fifties old. Dick and Jane shit. "See Spot run..." and all that good jazz. Pieces of cross-stitching was framed up everywhere. Old sayings like "Home is Where the Heart Is" and lists of good behavior. Scenes of little girls in big frilly dresses sitting up straight and obeying their parents. It was like a warped After School Special. This woman was, Lindsey decided, Mary Poppins minus the Prozac, catchy tunes and weird accent.

* * *

LVPD Crime Lab 1:45 p.m.

Dr. Parker, flanked by two local FBI agents, burst through the door and breezed past the receptionist. She headed back through the halls, her heel clicks echoed off the glass walls, warning all that she was on her way.

She knew where they were going to be. The conference room was packed with CSIs and detectives. A case board had pictures all over it, the table was littered with files, notes and empty Chinese take-out. Heads snapped up as she entered. Sofia, mouth and hands full, looked at her, blue eyes confused. She swallowed her food and took a sip of the soda at her elbow. "Cami?" Grissom was right behind her, "Dr. Parker?" She looked at them both, "These are Agents Yaris and Pascall, I called in a favor." She threw the folder full of faxes the Las Vegas Field Office had just received. "There are eight more murders, same M.O. from Carson City and DC. I've not investigated it, but I'll bet the bank that Daniels did these too."

Sofia paged through the files. "If the Feds try for the warrant, they'll get it a lot faster then any of us" She motioned to herself, Vega and Brass, "Could ever dream of." Nick, who was sitting at the table, his eyes locked on the girls who's faces decorated the board spoke up. "Sara was right the whole time, wasn't she?" Grissom nodded and looked to Cambridge. "So the FBI is officially involved now?" The raven haired PhD nodded, "I put in the call, wait, Assistant Director Johnson didn't call you?" Heads all around the table shook.

One of the agents, the over-muscled Pascall, cleared his throat. "Well he talked to someone, a CSI. Sawyer or something, Sickle or Saydee."

Sofia's blue eyes met Cambridge's green one and a sudden and terrible realization hit them. "Sara. Sara Sidle." The other agent, a smaller, darker man, shrugged, "Sounds right."

Greg, who had been quiet up till that point, stood. "You guys don't think that Sara..." Sofia had her hand covering her mouth, unable to fully process the horrible thoughts that flashed through her mind. She couldn't find a voice to scream with. Cambridge, shaking slightly, slid into a seat, she spoke with a low and shaky voice. "Oh God. She wouldn't. Oh God...Yes, yes, she would. In a heartbeat."

A new voice came from the doorway. Raspy with tears and grief, it echoed through the horror struck room like a scream. "I just got this." A very pale Catherine Willows handed her cell phone to an equally pallid Grissom. There was a single text message on the screen. "I FOUND HER. SEND SWAT TO DANIELS."

Captain Jim Brass ran his hand over his face. "Oh Jesus." There was a moment of horrified silence and then, Grissom stood. "Go. Now." No one had ever heard Gil Grissom sound so terrified and determined.

Guilt, fear, and hope shot through the gathered group's veins along with the adrenaline as they began to move. They were working against the clock, racing certain death itself. They were going to combat one of the demons that preyed on the innocent. They were on a crusade to rescue two of their own from the bowls of a hell that had been hidden and protected by the very city they fought for.

Author's Note: I was going to have this up earlier, but my apartment complex lost power which sent the server haywire and it's just now been fixed.

Aaaaand the race is on, very exciting stuff.

I meant to put this last chapter, but was rather rushed and forgot. Melissa Winters (No relation to Nadine Winters) is from episode 3x14: _One Hit Wonder. _The quote is from her closing statements at a trial shown during the first half of the episode, good stuff. I hope to, one day, go back and take a look at her closer look at Melissa Winters. All in good time, I suppose.

Speaking of quotes, "Mad"ison was the brilliant brainchild of HoneyLynx86 and "Mary Poppins off Prozac" comes from the wonderful icklebitodd. Both were just far too humorous and dead-on not to use.


	32. Chapter XXXI: Doors

_Chapter XXXI_

_Doors_

1:47 p.m.

She sat in her car, not one of the Forensic Department's SUVs. It blended in nicely with the band mix of Sedans. Daniels lived in a conservative neighborhood that reeked of old understated money. It was the kind of neighborhood where everyone pretended to mind their own business, but everything was really gossip fodder. All that meant was she only had a few minutes before day-nannies and gardeners started noticing her presence. She didn't have time to wait for SWAT. She didn't even know if SWAT was coming. She had sent the text to Catherine. She still wasn't sure why, but she had. She had just felt compelled. She owed Catherine; it was her fault that Lindsey had been taken anyway. It was her duty to return her to her mother. With that thought, Sara got out of her car. She started across the street and went to the Daniel's home.

From her previous visit, she knew that the locks on the door were laughable, a single bolt and a knob lock. The inside, however, was very well secured, as in Fort Knox secure. If she had taken the time, she would have gotten a slightly illegal toy from Archie. The tech always seemed to know where to acquire electronic no-nos. She had not had the time or the support, however. Knowing that she would set off the alarm anyway, she didn't even bother to pick the locks. Oh, she knew how, it was one of the less then exemplary skills she had picked up from one of her many foster-siblings. Sara reared back and kicked the door hard. Hours of working out paid off and after three solid kicks, the door gave way under her assault. Sara clucked her tongue as she shouldered her way through the wrecked door. Daniels should have really put a reinforced door up.

She drew her weapon and looked around, carefully, ready for any sign of danger. There was only the shrill scream of the alarm. She had five minutes, tops, to find Lindsey. Sara cleared each room with a quick efficiency that would have left academy green rookies in awe. She worked through the rooms, first and second floor. Every time she opened a door, she tensed. Each room was empty, but every time she looked, she was struck by a powerful mix of hope and fear. Hope that she would find Lindsey, and fear that she would find her...dead. The last room was empty and Sara stood there, gun held tightly in her right hand. Her left hand dragged down her face.

She didn't understand. She had been so sure that Lindsey would be here. Where else could Madison keep her? Sara scowled and bit her lower lip, concentrating, trying to put herself in Daniels head. Of course, walking around in the psycho's mind was Cami's deal, but Sara understood criminals. She understood the trails they made, the clues they left. She had to rely on what she did the best; she needed to follow the evidence.

She looked around the hall with a new perspective. If this were a scene, where would start? She started back down the stairs, her mind leaping ahead of her legs. Her eyes, dark brown and lively, took in every nook and cranny, they searched for anything and everything that could be out of place. She found it on the floor. Standing out like a beacon on the highly polished hard wood floor was a faint dusting of white powder. Powder, just like she'd found on each girl's clothes and shoes. She opened up the closest door and was met with a set of steps. She almost hit herself for being so thick. The basement, it was probably soundproof and there would be no windows. The perfect place to hide kidnapped little girls. She started down the stairs, taking them two at a time.

* * *

Lindsey looked up, her heart jumped up in her throat. She was coming back. Daniels was coming back. She could hear her coming down the stairs. Lindsey pushed her hair out of her face and dried her tears. This could be her chance. She looked around, searching for a weapon or something. There were fluffy pillows and stuffed animals. She could cuddle Daniels to death... great. Her eyes fell on the bowl of soup and crackers that Madison had brought earlier. More importantly, she was looking at the tray that held the food she hadn't dared to eat. It was a plastic fast-food style tray, but it was the best she had. It was either the tray or teddy bear. She wouldn't hurt the woman, but if she could stun her, maybe she could escape...and maybe she'd been watching too many superhero movies. Either way, she picked up the tray and gave it a practice swing.

Sara worked around the boxes and crates. It was dim in the basement, the entire area was lit by two bare bulbs. Sara squinted into the darkness and on the far wall, she could see the outline of a door, she went to it, like a moth to the flame. She reached the door and stared at it for just a minute. She didn't know if she wanted to look. She may find Lindsey alive and well or there was a good chance she would have to take her bloody body back to her mother..._or_ there would be nothing. She took a deep breathe and began to take off the chains and unlock the bolts that held the door shut.

* * *

Lindsey stood right beside the door, her heart jackhammering against her rib cage. She wished her mom was here. Her mother had been in all sorts of dangerous situations, she had been the one who had pulled her out of the car when it had been in the water. She took a deep breathe and hated the fact that her hands shook. She heard the bolt being thrown and the chain being moved. Her muscles tensed and she readied for the attack.

* * *

Sara turned the knob, every second slowed to an eternity. She wanted to know, she wanted to know where Lindsey was and if she was alive and her last clue, the most important clue of her life was hidden behind the door. It swung open  
The door swung opened and Lindsey lunged, swinging the tray as hard as she could. It hit something solid and she reared back again, but stopped when her eyes fell on the gun pointed at her. Her blue eyes darted up. "SARA!"

* * *

2:05 p.m.

The first thing Sara saw when she opened the door was a red tray coming at her, it connected with her chest and she winced. Her gun moved up automatically and then she saw her attacker. Lindsey was standing there, brandishing a plastic tray like her last shield in a violent joust. She was alive, she was okay. She recognized her. "SARA!"

Sara fell to one knee, dropped her knee to the concrete floor and pulled Lindsey into a hug. "Lindsey. Oh God, Lindsey. You're okay. You're okay." She ran a hand through the girl's blonde hair. "Your mom is going to be so happy to see you." Lindsey leaned against her, sniffling tears. "I miss my mom." Sara nodded and leaned back on her heels, "I know. Listen, I've got a car outside and I am taking you home." She wiped a tear away from Lindsey's cheek and then, one from her own. "It's going to be okay now, I promise." She smiled at Lindsey, "C'mon." She held out a hand, "Lets go."

Lindsey didn't take Sara's hand though, she stood there, frozen, her eyes wide. Almost inaudibly, Lindsey whispered her name. In the reflection of the girl's terrified blue eyes, she saw a glint, a glamor, a shadow. Then the world exploded and Sara was thrown forward against Lindsey. She couldn't think or even breathe. In all of her life, one full of disappointment and violence, she had never felt such an intense and debilitating pain. Her mouth twisted and she tried to scream, she could not, but Lindsey's soul piercing shriek echoed through the basement.

Author's Note: Now THAT is a cliffhanger...Did I mention that I'm going on vacation after this?


	33. Chapter XXXII: Saddle Up

_Chapter XXXII_

_Saddle Up_

2:02 p.m.

As soon as the call came, the LVPD SWAT team, Alpha division, hit their feet. They moved with a quick and automatic precision. They pulled on their heavy fatigues and bullet proof vests. Their equipment belts were quickly buckled on and their large assault rifles were assembled and in hand within moments. They pulled their helmets on and did mic checks and were in the heavily armored SWAT van within five minutes.

Kara Johnson did not like this, not at all. They were going in blind. The Doll Collector had been found and they were going in to clear the house. It was a possible hostage situation and the victim was the daughter of one of the Geek Squad, which practically made the girl one of their own. To add to the danger level, there was a member of the Geek Squad there, putting herself in danger. Kara gripped her gun and began to psych herself up as the van lunched around corners and shot down straight aways, sirens blaring. She wanted this op, wanted it like a junkie wanted his next hit. She felt connected to the case. She wanted to help bring down the freak, the monster, who had killed that little girl she and her friends had stumbled on to. She wanted to help rescue Lindsey Willows, she wanted to help.

* * *

2:03 p.m.

Catherine rode in the back of the Tahoe. Nick was driving and Greg was riding shotgun, Warrick sat in back with her, his hand covering hers. She watched the patrol cars around them ran their sirens as they all rushed down the highway. It was all too slow. Everything was dragging by. Every second that passed...Lindsey could be dead. Sara wasn't answering her phone and no one could get a location on Madison Daniels.

Every time she thought she had control of herself, a new round of tears came to her eyes and a new jolt to her heart. She knew, deep down in her soul, that she could walk into that house to find her baby dead. A thin ray of hope was there, though, Sara might have found her. She could have gotten there in time.  
Catherine prayed that Sara had truly found Lindsey. She didn't know what she would do if her daughter was dead. She just didn't know.

* * *

Sofia sat in the passenger seat of the car. Beside her, Jim Brass, cold and focused, drove the car with expert precision. Bullets of sweat poured down his face, despite the icy cold air. Behind her, in the back seat, Grissom sat. He was silent. One would think he was unaffected, if not for the way he gripped his hands together and the haunted look of pain in his gray eyes.

For herself, she still couldn't breathe. She was scared, terrified, even. She was afraid for Lindsey, she was afraid for Catherine, she was afraid for Sara and she was afraid for herself. She kicked herself for not keeping a better watch on Sara. She had known that the woman had felt incredibly guilty and useless. She should have known, she should have stopped her. The streets blurred by them, but all she could think was that they were going too slow.

* * *

2:06 p.m.

Holly Gribbs. That was the name that ran through his head. Another CSI that he had let down. Like he'd let down Catherine, like he'd let down Sara. "_Her behavior is a direct result of my leadership"_ His own words mocked him. He should have been stricter with her. He should have made her stay in counseling. He should have never called her to Vegas. If he had done his job...she would be safe. He had let his heart override his head and now she was in danger. He cursed himself for being so foolish. Anyone could have seen that Sara was obsessed with this case, they all were. But Sara had taken it personally and it had stopped being a case. The 'Doll Collector' had become her quest. He only hoped that they were wrong. That she had found Lindsey and that they were both fine. That everything would work out. The sheriff would thank Sara and they would all apologize and she would come back to the fold, safe and sound.

He glanced at Sofia. He might not be Sara's lover, but he was still her friend and he was a bastard for not backing her up when it counted. That's why she had plunged into danger, gone into the demons lair; all because he hadn't trusted or believed in her when it was important.

The car came to a stop and the presence of a white limo and a wide open door sent everyone into action.

Author's Note: (Insert evil laughter) In case you have or want to ask: Yes, keeping everyone hanging does indeed amuse me.


	34. Chapter XXXIII: Pain

_Chapter XXXIII_

_Pain_

2:05 p.m.

Lindsey saw her come in with the huge knife in her hands. She felt her insides freeze. Sara didn't know she was there. She trembled, "Sara." Her voice squeaked out of her too tight throat. Sara looked up...but it was too late. Madison had struck, and her knife, sharp and deadly had found a home in Sara's back. Lindsey watched as Sara's brown eyes clouded over with pain. The woman opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out. It was her own scream that echoed through the basement.

Sara stumbled forward against her. Lindsey could still see the knife buried in her back, blood gushing out, coating the woman's black teeshirt. Lindsey's head swam momentarily, there was so much blood. Sara could feel her breathe violently hitch and something deep inside of her split wide open.

* * *

She didn't even realize her knees had buckled until she felt Lindsey closer to her. She collapsed sideways, the knife was still buried in her back. She could feel blood, wet and sticky pooling under her newly collapsed form. That was bad. There was too much blood. She'd been stabbed and it was something vital.

Her vision was growing gray, though in the dim light she wasn't sure how she knew that. Above her she could see a kaleidescope of shapes. Lindsey's face, the killer Madison Daniels, the swinging light bulb. She could see her own hand, pale, trembling and bloody reaching out for Lindsey. "Linds..."

Lindsey felt Sara's hand grab at her, spreading red blood over her dingy white shirt. Sara's eyes were drooping shut, the knife was still in her. The woman bent down and ripped it out of Sara's back. Sara jerked and whimpered in pain.

She clawed her way up, pulling herself into a sitting position. Lindsey could see the blood running out of the hole in her back and she wanted to put her hands on it to stop it, but did not. Sara stared at Madison.

Madison still had the knife, red with Sara's blood, in her hands. "I knew she would be trouble." She dangled something from her free hand. "Did you think that alarm would call the police, Miss Sidle?" She shook her head and laughed, "As if I would trust the blustering Neanderthals that patrol this city with my life. No, I knew the second you kicked in my door." She smiled, it a was an icy cold and feral expression. "You thought you could stop me. All you did was annoy me, Miss Sidle. Though, since Lindsey helped you, I suppose she will have to be punished." She idly ran her finger across the tip of her knife, as if testing the sharpness. "She just isn't right. I'll have to try again."

Lindsey was frozen in place. Madison Daniels was insane and she was powerful. Her mother had once said that power corrupts. She wished her mother didn't always have to be right. Madison wasn't just mean or even only insane. She was evil. Lindsey believed this with the blind understanding that is given to all beings, a basic instinctive knowledge. It was black and white at the moment, Sara was good and Madison was evil...and evil was winning. Her mind, as fevered and terrified as it was, came up with a quote, "_There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it." _That was Madison Daniels. Power hungry, evil and ruthless. She was relentless. She wasn't going to stop. Both she and Sara would die here and now.

* * *

Sara shuddered and tried to speak, but she couldn't. The pain was indescribable, it felt like her every nerve ending was on fire and she could feel herself growing weaker from blood loss and just like the cliché, she was cold. She had never felt so cold, it wasn't supposed to be this cold during the hot desert day. She looked at Lindsey, the girl was coated in her blood and scared. She gathered her strength and patted Lindsey's cheek. "S'gonna be allrigh', Linds." Her voice was weak, her words slurred together and everything came out in a shaky whisper.

* * *

Lindsey looked from Sara to Madison. With the knife gone, the bleeding was supposed to get better, wasn't it? Why was Sara bleeding so much? She didn't want to die. She didn't want Sara to die. There was not going to be a sudden rescue. Sara had been her hero, but she was down, she was dying right there in Lindsey's arms. She looked at the brunette again. She was right in front of her, barely supporting herself. Despite her wounds, she was trying to protect her. Sara was trying to keep herself between them. Lindsey wished she could be so brave. Sara looked back at her and whispered something, trying to encourage her even as the warm red blood flowed out of her body and to the concrete. Though her brown eyes were half lidded and filled with agony, Sara was trying to tell her something. She followed the CSI's eye line to the floor and was filled with a cold knowledge that someone was about to die.

Author's Note: (insert your choice of suspense music and or sound effects riiiight here.)

The quote, "There is no..." is from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone...I find it especially fitting for Madison.


	35. Chapter XXXIV: Shots Fired

_Chapter XXXIV_

_Shots Fired_

2:09 p.m.

SWAT moved across the front yard, as smooth as oiled silk. Sara's car was sitting abandoned across the street and someone had kicked in the front door of the Daniel's home. The team, lead by Leutinant Johnson, entered the home, swiveling around, clearing each room as they went. They were modern day warriors in black Kevlar.

* * *

Jim Brass and Sofia Curtis followed them in, service weapons tensely gripped and held out in front of them. Both of them, Jim especially, knew how little the vests really protected.

Sofia's heart beat a tattoo into her ribcage. Adrenaline overrode fear and pushed her forward, following the SWAT team as they moved through the house. She could see nothing there that would signify Sara's presence. All the doors were already open, but there was no sign of life anywhere.

* * *

Gil had his hand on her shoulder, somewhere between supporting her, and holding her back. She could only stare as the SWAT team, followed by the detectives, went in. They all stood there, waiting for some kind of sign. All Catherine could think of was those little girls. Little girls just like Lindsey...who had never made it out of that house alive. A sob caught in her throat. Her hand slid into her pocket and found the simple card she'd been given earlier.

_Hours Before_

_Catherine had been standing in the lobby, still shell-shocked. She had not gone to the press confrence, she could barely function, she couldn't go before the press and talk about her baby being missing. She damned the killer, she damned Sara, but most of all, she damned herself. She was standing there, looking out the windows, doing nothing. Letting the precious minutes slip by where, somewhere, her daughter was in mortal peril._

_A hand descended on her shoulder. She jumped and turned around. She was met with the pale and shadowed face of Carrol Winters. She offered a weak smile. "I'm sorry to hear about your daughter, Miss Willows." Catherine choked back a sob. "Thank you." Carrol pulled her into a hug and pressed something into her hand. When they broke apart, Catherine looked at it. It was a small, very expensive business card. The heavy calligraphy read: Never Forget. On the back there was a vaguely familiar address. She looked at Carrol. "I don't understand." The woman shrugged, "And God knows I hope you never will...but if your daughter isn't found...well, I would have never made it without the group's support._

Catherine didn't want a therapy group, she didn't want to be just another face in a roomful of women who'd lost their children. She wanted her daughter alive, well and in her arms.

* * *

_2:10 p.m._

The calls of "Clear" sounded from each room. Sweat trickled down Sofia's back. Where were they? The professionally decorated house was devoid of life. Sofia's stomach acid soured and churned inside of her, making her sick. Then she heard them.

The gunshots. Calls of "SHOTS FIRED!" echoed through the home. Sofia suddenly knew, she knew it as well as she knew her own name. "THEY'RE IN THE BASEMENT!" She started to run down the hall, but she was forcibly grabbed by the back of her vest and shoved against the wall. She met the intense stare of Kara Johnson. "Get a hold of yourself, Curtis." That being said, Kara moved down the rest of the hall and kicked the basement door, the only closed door in the house, open.

"LVPD!" They moved down the stairs, both ready for anything...anything but the scene that met their eyes.

* * *

The sound of gunshots startled Catherine out of her thoughts. "LINDSEY!" She tore away from Gil. Nothing would keep her from her baby now. 


	36. Chapter XXXV: Life and Death

_Chapter XXXV_

_Life and Death_

2:10 p.m.

Lindsey's eyes fell to the floor and she saw it. Sara's gun, big, black and powerful. Madison was standing there, knife still in hand and Sara was trying to stand up, but to no avail. Lindsey looked from the pale and shaking Sara, to the terrifying visage of Madison Daniels. Her eyes cut once more to the gun. It was lying on the blood smudged concrete, calling to her. She reached for it, her fingers stretching for the cold steel of the gun. When her shaking hand found the prize it sought, Madison noticed. "What are you doing?" Lindsey swung the gun around, aiming over Sara's lolling head, dead center at Madison Daniel's chest.

"Don't come any closer." Madison scowled, "Put that down!" Her voice, slightly panicked, echoed eerily off the wall. "NOW, Lindsey!" She took a step forward, the knife in her hand was twitching as if Madison could not decide if she wanted to stab or slash. Neither option was good.  
Sara, her voice barely audible and her grip weak, took a hold of Lindsey's arm. "Run." Madison snapped her head and bared her teeth at Sara. "Why don't you just fucking die!" Her arm came down in a wicked arc, aiming the knife at Sara's chest.

Lindsey squeezed the trigger. The pistol bucked in her hands and she almost dropped it, but she held tight. The gun shot was loud, louder then the television and movies made it out to be.

Madison had lurched to a stop, her knife fell from her hand mid-swing and clanged against the floor. A blossom of red covered her starched white shirt. Her eyes went wide, as if she didn't believe that she could bleed. She wheezed and one of her hands reached out, as if to strike at Lindsey.

She pulled the trigger again and again and again. The woman fell to the floor and Lindsey kept pulling the trigger. Tears fell down her face and she was screaming, but she kept pulling the trigger.

The world was on mute. Sara knew that her gun had been fired, she could smell the gunpowder, but her ears just weren't registering the sound of the gunfire or Lindsey's screams. She saw Madison fall, blood coming from the gaping holes in her chest and trickling out of her mouth. Her eyes, the perfect blue orbs that held a malevolence that Sara had actually feared, were wide but empty. The woman collapsed on the floor, face down and was dead. Madison's blood crept across the floor and mixed with Sara's own split blood. Sara felt dirty by association. She could hear the gun clicking, Lindsey had emptied the clip. Sara wanted to grab her and protect her. She wanted to take the gun into her own hands and wipe Lindsey's fingerprints off of it and replace them with their own. She wanted to offer words of comfort. She could do nothing, because gray was beginning to turn to black and Sara Sidle knew that she was about to die.

Author's Note: You can't keep a Willows woman down. Oh the reprecussions of this...aren't we all glad that a talented and rather beutiful (if she doesn't say so herself) psychologist is on stand-by? What? You thought I forgot about Cambridge, didn't you? Oh yes, and there's the whole Sara-on-the-brink-of-death thing too.

I just watched_ Slaves of Vegas. _Every time I see that episode it makes me wonder what the writers and the 60 of the fanbase sees in the whole Grissom and Sara thing. GSR versus Grissom/Lady Heather. Um the dominatrix wins every time, people.


	37. Chapter XXXVI: Don't You Dare

_Chapter XXVI_

_Don't You Dare_

2:11 p.m.

Catherine ran into the house and pushed her way around SWAT members. She saw one of them kick in a door and the officer, followed by Sofia, went in. She followed them. She had to get to Lindsey. Those gunshots. Her daughter could be dead. Her beautiful little girl. She went down the stairs and heard the SWAT member's gasp and Sofia's cry and finally she saw what they saw. Lindsey was kneeling on the floor, covered in blood. There was a gun in her hand and she was still pulling the trigger. The clicks of the gun's hammer against the empty chambers echoed through the basement." She pushed past Sofia and the officer and ran to her daughter. "LINDSEY!" Lindsey looked from Madison Daniel's bullet ridden body and saw Catherine running towards her. She dropped the gun. "MOM!" Catherine grabbed her daughter and pulled her close. "Oh God, I thought I lost you." Lindsey squeezed her mother tightly and hid her face against her chest. "Mom, you gotta help Sara." That snapped Catherine out of her tunnel vision. Lying there, beside Lindsey on the dirty concrete floor, was Sara. Sara was in the pool of her own blood.

* * *

Kara Johnson had seen a lot of blood and a lot of tragedy, but it was the first time in many years that it hit her. She grabbed her radio, and began calling for the EMTs that were already en route. She walked forward and bent down to check the perp's body. There was no pulse. Madison Daniels was dead. She looked over to the fallen CSI.

* * *

Sofia's breath stopped in her chest. Sara was lying on the floor, bleeding. "SARA!" She ran past Johnson, she didn't bother to look at Daniels nor did she spare a glance for the reunited mother and daughter. All of her attention was on Sara. 

She was pale, her breathing shaky, her dark eyes clouded and unfocused. Sofia was holding Sara's face between her own hands. "SARA! Sara, damn it Sara!" She rolled her on the her side, revealing the blood gushing from her back. She pressed her hands against the wound, desperately trying to hold the precious blood inside her lover's body. "Sara , you listen to me. Don't you dare leave me. Don't you dare. Not yet. Not now. Please, Baby, hold on."

Tears clouded up in her eyes. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was the detective. Sara was a CSI, damn it. She was supposed to spend her time working scenes and running tests...not risking her life. She moved Sara against her, using her leg to put pressure on the wound, she supported Sara's upper body against her chest. She grabbed Sara's face, leaving bloody fingerprints on cracked-ice-white skin. "Sara, look at me. Look at me, Sara. You can't die. You can't die, I won't let you die." She ran her hands through dark silk hair. "Please say something, Love. Please say something."

* * *

Gil Grissom paused at the top of the basement stairs. The scene that met his eyes was heart wrenching and it affected him like no other scene ever had. Catherine had Lindsey in her arms, both were crying, Madison Daniels lay on the floor, very much dead. The worst part, though, was Sara. She was in Sofia's arms, pale and bleeding. He rushed down the stairs to her and for the first time in his entire career, he damned the evidence. He knelt by the two women and grabbed Sara's wrist, he found her pulse. It was weak and thready. He looked up at the SWAT team member. "WHERE IS THE DAMN AMBULENCE!" His voice was broke and cracked and that was a sign to all that the situation was at it's most desprate. He looked over at his protegee, "Don't you dare die, Sara Sidle." His words were low, barely a whisper, but they were just as desperate and scared as Sofia's cries.

* * *

Sara floated on a blood red sea. The sky was black and gray. She could barely breathe and every time she did manage to pull breath into her lungs, there was a sickening, searing pain in her back. She wanted that pain to go away. Around her, she could hear things again. Mostly she heard voices. Sofia's voice came from somewhere far away, it called to her. Sara wanted to go to wherever that was. Sofia would take away the pain. She made the monumental effort and pried her eyes open. The world was gray and fuzzy. She tried to speak but found she could not. The one thing she saw was Sofia. Blonde hair and kind blue eyes. She had been crying. Sara wanted to tell her not to cry, that she was really fine. It was just a scratch. She couldn't, though. She could feel Sofia's arms around her, she could hear Sofia's thundering heartbeat, she could smell her subtle perfume, she could taste the salt of her lover's tears as they splashed onto her own face. "Sara, love, that's right, keep your eyes open. Look at me." Sara wanted to keep her eyes open, she wanted to look at Sofia, but she couldn't. The pain was washing over her in waves that were too powerful to ignore. The world started to gray out again. 

There was no long tunnel nor did her life flash before her eyes. The gray and black just kept closing in until all she could see was the vivid blue of Sofia's eyes, then they too were gone.

* * *

The ambulances, red lights flashing, screeched to a halt and six EMTs came out, back boards and med kits ready. They were lead by a well muscled, streaky haired man by the name of Hank Peddigrew. They were directed down the stairs by a couple of uniforms. Hank took in the scene with a quick and methodical eye. From the mother and daughter, to the DOA to the woman being cradled by two people. His mind went into momentary shock. He knew her. "SARA!" He doubled his pace and was by her side in an instant. His partner was right behind him and he began to dictate what he could remember. "Sara Sidle. Approximate age, thirty-five. Weight one hundred and seven pounds." He looked from the blonde to the gray haired man. "Lay her flat. What happened?" His questions were quick and blunt, but his concern came through. 

Grissom grunted, "Stabbed in the lower back, right side. There's a lot of blood loss..." His voice was tight, as though he was physically forcing it to come out. "She's B-Negative." Hank nodded and motioned to his partner. "Let's get her on the gurney." He looked over to the other pair of EMTs. "Hugh, let Viv and John take the kid, I need you here. NOW!" The other man came over and they quickly and carefully transferred Sara's limp body to the backboard and then the the gurney. "Up the stairs, quickly. The three men took Sara up the stairs, and Sofia ran behind them, unwilling to let Sara out of her sight. Grissom quickly followed.

Outside they rolled her past the uniforms and under the tape. The press was just rolling up and Maria Rymer, quickly tailed by her camera man, ran towards them. "Is CSI Sidle okay? Where is Lindsey Willows? What happened here? Isn't this the home of Senatorial candidate Madison Daniels? Where is Ms. Daniels?" The EMTs pushed by her and Sofia followed in her blood spattered clothes. They loaded Sara into the back of the ambulance. Sofia stepped up to go along, but Hank stopped her. "No, ma'am. There's no room."

Sofia's face twisted into an acidy scowl. "Bullshit." He looked at her, blue eyes pleading, "Please. We need all the room...to stabilize her." Brass grabbed Sofia by the arms and pulled her back. "C'mon, Sophie, I'll drive you." Sofia could only nod. "Okay."

* * *

Catherine carried Lindsey up the stairs and through the house. The girl's clothes were bloody and she hid her face against Catherine. She was really too big to be carried, but neither mother nor daughter complained. Catherine didn't even notice the flashbulbs and cameras as she went to the ambulance. She was completely focused on her daughter. She watched the first ambulance pull away, taking Sara to Desert Palms Hospital, red lights going, sirens blasting. She could already see that they were breaking the speed limit. She climbed into the ambulance and the EMT shut the door behind them. 

Catherine, reluctantly let Lindsey go and she looked down at her hands. They were red with blood. Sara's blood. She thought the pain would be over when she had Lindsey back in her arms. She was wrong. Her heart soul shattered one more time as she looked at her hands. Sara had saved Lindsey but she was at the brink of death. It was all her fault. She clasped her bloody hands together. Sara's blood was on her hands. Sara's blood was on her hands. That thought, along with the vivid image of Sara bleeding out onto the concrete floor ran through Catherine's head over and over again.

Author's Note: Hank was a last minuite addition to the story. I had EMTs and I thought, 'Why not throw Hank into the mix?' I think everyone has to write at least one big 'You can't die because I love you!' scene. Here's mine, whoo and two hoos for me.


	38. Chapter XXXVII: Flat Line

_Chapter XXXVII_

_Flat Line_

Hank had never worked on anyone he'd really known before. He and Sara had dated a bit, well sort of. She was smart and beautiful and she was in his rig. They had a mask over her face, giving her oxygen and they were trying to stop the bleeding. He expertly started an IV, trying to get saline into her. Her skin, that had always been somewhere between alabaster and sun kissed, was a deathly pale and her lips were blue. They had her pulse, it was barely there, but they had it. "Sara. Sara, it's me, Hank. I want you to listen to me. We are taking you to the hospital and you are going to hold on until you get there. I haven't had a DOA all week and you are not going to be the first one.

* * *

Doctor Lucy Gabriel snapped her gloves off. The skateboarder definitely had a broken wrist. She would send a nurse in to splint it and he could follow up with an orthopedist over at the Vegas Center for Sports Medicine. She ran her hand through her unruly mop of red curls and was looking forward to getting off her feet when Krystal, the ER's chief of nursing, saw her. "Luce! We've got a stab wound coming in. She's some kind of cop, in critical condition. ETA two minutes." Lucy snapped to action. "Clear Trauma Room 2!" 

Just as predicted, the ambulance arrived two minutes later and she met the EMTs at the bay doors. Hank Peddigrew jumped out and they eased the gurney out. Lucy almost stopped in her tracks. If she didn't know better, if she hadn't been at the funeral, she would swear she was seeing Debbie Marlin again. Hank's words finally broke through her shock. "CSI Sara Sidle, stabbed approximately twelve minutes ago. Single wound to the right side of the lower back. We've put in an IV. Guy on scene told us she was B Neg. She is about thirty-five and one hundred and seven pounds. BP is thready and has been dropping." They burst through into the Trauma Room. She moved around. "Lift on three." she did the count and they lifted the brunette woman and placed her on the hospital gurney. She and her nurses began to work immediately. She barked orders as they eased the woman to her side. "Samuel, get a second IV running, Deidre, get a pack of O Neg and type and cross just to make sure." She scowled as she moved the blood soaked gauze. "Someone get Tidwell, I need help with this!"

Moments later, Vance Tidwell burst through the doors, scrubs on. He snapped on his gloves. "What have we got?" Nurses moved around quickly, the IV bag of blood was hooked to her arm. Lucy started to explain but was cut off when the monitors when haywire. "Damn it! She's going into V-Fib!" Vance moved to get the crash cart, but by the time he had the machine, the patient had flat lined. He cursed and they began to cut off her shirt. They put her on her back. He looked over at one of the nurses, "Charge to one-twenty!" Deidre, one of the nurses, looked up at him. "Charged." He grabbed the padles while Lucy coated them with gel. When she was done, he gave the signal and his colleague jerked her hands away from the body. He moved in, "Clear!" He put the padles to the woman's body and she jerked, but her heart did not restart. "Son of a bitch! Charge to 140!" Lucy moved around to her IV. "Pushing two grams of epi!" The defibrillator charged again and he put it back to the woman's body. "Clear!" Her body jerked again, but still nothing. Samuel scowled, "She's been down for a minute and a quarter." He scowled, "Charge to 180." He leaned over the woman. "Don't do this to me. I will not have an Honest-to-God hero die in my ER today!" The third time, or perhaps his words, did it and the patient's heart began to beat again.

Lucy frowned, "Her oxygen is low. I'm bagging her." Vance nodded. "I saw the report just before I came down here. Channel 5 is going nuts. This chick." Lucy looked up, annoyed, "CSI Sara Sidle." He nodded, "She found the Willows girl, and apparently caught the Doll Collector." Lucy frowned as she carefully guided the air tube into the woman's trachea. "She looks just like Debbie. It could be her sister." He nodded, "Yeah. Actually, I've worked with her. She's gold with rape victims." Once the respirator was breathing for her, Sara's vitals picked up a bit. Lucy came over to the side with the wound, it was in an awkward position, but she and Vance looked at it. It was still bleeding, and Vance had his hand inside. "It's a bad hit. Long and deep. We've got kidney damage and she is bleeding out. I've already clamped down three vessels, but she needs to go to the OR." Lucy nodded, "I'll call Smith."

They rushed Sara Sidle through the halls and into the elevator. There was an Operating room ready with one of Vegas's best surgeons. Sidle was as stable as she was going to be. If they didn't get her into surgery now, they were going to lose her...even then they might lose her.

Author's Note: I've seen far too many old episodes of _ER _for my own good. The real thing is never as good as the show, I know that for a fact.


	39. Chapter XXXVIII: Waiting

_Chapter XXXVIII_

_Waiting_

How many times would they gather, in the cold waiting room worrying about one of their own? Nick and Greg paced the small area at different speeds, neither speaking. Warrick and Catherine were with Lindsey. Grissom stood, staring down the hallway that they had rushed Sara down. Brass sat beside Sofia, the two detectives were silent, and still. Only their eyes gave away their feelings.

* * *

Sofia was coated in Sara's blood, but she had made no move to wash herself. She hadn't even noticed it. She just kept seeing it in her head. Sara bleeding out. Sara's chocolate browns clouded over, the spark of life in them dim. There had been so much blood. Sofia had seen many bloody scenes but this was no Jane Doe she could just look over. This was her woman, her Sara. Her Sara was dancing on the threshold of death. She didn't know what to do. In her career, she was bound to lose people she cared about. No law enforcement was safe. Nick had been buried alive, Brass had been shot, Warrick had almost died of neon gas poisoning. Sofia wrapped her arms around herself and though she tried to fight them back, the tears fell anyway.

* * *

Cambridge Parker walked down the halls, she'd gotten the call, but she was still numb, she still couldn't believe it. Sara "The Wild Woman" Sidle had been shot. It just didn't compute in her head. She couldn't wrap her mind around the idea that Sara could be dying. That she could already be dead. She found the ER waiting room and took in the scene. It was quiet, and it was deathly serious and just a little bit morbid.

Sofia caught her eye first, but since the woman was spattered with blood, it was no surprise. She went to her and knelt down in front of the blonde detective. "Hey." Sofia looked at her, her eyes focused slowly. She looked around, "She's in shock." Of course they all looked like they were in shock to some degree or another. One of the people, she thought his name was Brass, stood up. "I'll go see if I can find a blanket and maybe some scrubs she can change into." She nodded and then looked to Gil Grissom. "Any news?" The gray haired man shook his head, "No." In his hand was a clip board. Cami tilted her head to the side. "Sara's information?" He nodded once more. She took it, "You didn't get very far." Something passed through the man's eyes, it may have been sorrow or perhaps annoyance. "I don't know her middle name." She took the pen from his lax hand. "Selene. Sara Selene Sidle, her parents had a thing about alliteration...or something." She sat down in the chair that Brass had just emptied. "She always hated it in college." Her hands were shaking, but she couldn't think about what she was writing, so she kept talking. "She flew through college. She tested out of the easy stuff, flew through the hard stuff. You know Sara, she maxed out her hours and took summer courses, went to every lecture Harvard offered." She shook her head, "She finished up early and was off to med school before I knew what happened. That's Sar, though. All work and no play until you drag her to the park and force her until she forgets to be serious."

She looked down at the papers in her hands. Medical information, background information, next of kin. Gil Grissom had left that blank too. She met his gray eyes and for a moment, she was silent. "In case of medical emergency, I am Sara's next of kin." She was, unknowingly, echoing Grissom's own words about Jim Brass. Grissom's eyebrow climbed, "When did this happen?" Cami sighed, "When Cowboy over there was buried alive. Sara called me; I hadn't heard her so upset in years. With her kind of family...well, she asked me to take her power of attorney." She ran her hands through her already mussed black hair. "Sara's a fighter. She has been ever since I've known her. She'll pull through this, she has to."

The doors swung open and everyone looked up. A frazzled looking doctor in blood spattered scrubs came out. She looked around. "Sara Sidle?" When the entire room stood, she nodded, "Right. Well, she's stabilized and gone on to surgery. I can't really say anything more then that, not to non-family members."

From the corner, Warrick, who had been running between Catherine and the rest of the CSIs, spoke up, "We are her only family, Doctor." Cami nodded, "I have her power of attorney, and he" She indicated Grissom, "Is her supervisor. We need to know." The doctor nodded, "Miss Sidle suffered a single stab wound. From my examination she's got extensive damage to the right kidney and liver, she's lost a lot of blood and her condition is critical. That's really all I know. I can show you to the waiting room upstairs; the surgeon will be able to let you know more when he's done."

* * *

She was fine, physically speaking. The doctors were being very careful and kind with Lindsey. The uniforms were keeping the press at bay. There had been no news about Sara. Hadn't Warrick just gotten past his brush with death? A few months ago, Brass had won his battle against the bullet and before that, Nick had survived a hellish imprisonment underground. Sara would pull through this; she was young and strong. She was just like Holly Gribbs. Holly Gribbs, though, hadn't survived. She had died. They had brought her to this same hospital. Holly had died. Sara could die.

Lindsey was asleep, resting for the first time since she'd been taken. Her eyelids moved and every once and a while she let out a little moan. Her baby girl was having nightmares. Catherine ran her hand through her daughter's hair, trying to calm her night terrors.

She knew that she would have a few night terrors herself. The image was burned into her mind. Lindsey, covered in Sara's blood, holding that gun, staring at the body of Madison Daniels. Her baby had been forced to kill someone. It wasn't something she had ever wanted Lindsey to have to see, let alone do. Catherine remembered how she had felt after killing Sid Google. Even though she'd shot him protecting Grissom...there had been guilt and horror and even now she sometimes awoke from vivid nightmares about it. She didn't want that for Lindsey. She laid her head down on Lindsey's bed, unwilling to leave her daughter's side for a moment. Her mom and Sam had been notified, so had Nancy. They would be along later, for now it was just Lindsey and herself. She didn't know what lay ahead. She didn't know how to comfort Lindsey, not really. She didn't know how this would affect their lives. She just didn't know.

There was one thing she was sure of, though. Sara was her personal hero. Sara had found her little girl. Had tried to go by the book, but even when she'd know she was in danger, she'd gone in...gone to rescue Lindsey. She'd been stabbed trying to save her girl. If Sara died...Catherine would never forgive herself.

"_Do you know where I can find Catherine Willows?" _

"_She's in the field."_

_Sara grinned a little, her curly hair and small gap toothed smile made her look much younger then she was. Like less of a CSI and more of the girl next door._

"_So when do I start kicking for gifts?_

"_When the spirit moves you, Sara, which in your case will be never."_

_Her smile had faltered a bit and her brown eyes had looked just a little hurt._

"_Every time we get a case with a hint of domestic abuse, you go off the deep end! What is your deal!" Her intense brown eyes had flashed and Sara had fired back a stinging retort._

"_You're the last person I'd turn to for help with my daughter."_

"_MY DAUGHTER IS AS GOOD AS DEAD AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!"_

_Sara bending over a dead body._

_Sara dusting for prints._

_Sara drinking coffee and looking utterly exhausted._

_Sara performing CPR on Warrick_

_Sara lying in a pool of her own blood in that basement._

_Sara on a slab in Doc Robbin's morgue._

Catherine jerked awake. The dream had been intense, and very true. Catherine looked at her still sleeping daughter and indulged herself in a few more tears. Every time Sara had offered the olive branch, she had snapped it in two and jabbed it at the other woman's eyes. Why? Why had she treated Sara like that? There were so many reasons, all of them petty. She had been threatened by the other woman. She was younger and smarter then her. She was driven and innovative. She had been Grissom's favorite, his hand picked girl. She had invaded their territory with that damn gap-toothed smile of hers and this never-say-die attitude. Catherine had hated her from the first time she'd heard the woman's name.

She had never put aside that animosity. She'd fed the fires of competition and disharmony with snarky remarks and subtle digs. She ran her hands through her own hair. She could hear the echoes of her viscous words. She felt the cut into her, each word bringing a new sensation of pain. She was so wrong. So very wrong. Sara had only helped her. Ever since she'd come to Vegas, Sara had tried to be friendly. Now, she was, according to Warrick, in surgery. She'd been in surgery for three hours now. Three hours and there had been no word. She owed the woman more then an apology - she owed Sara the world. Sara had found her daughter. She had figured it out all by herself and even when she was ordered to stop, when she was fired, she still had brought Lindsey home. Catherine was afraid. She didn't know what she would say to Sara. Didn't know if she even had the words to convey how sorry she was. She was more afraid, though, that she would never get a chance to say anything to Sara at all.

* * *

Warrick stood in the hallway, half way between Lindsey's room and the elevator that would take him to the waiting room. He leaned against the wall and blew out a sigh. He hadn't ever felt this useless, not since Holly had died. That thought chilled him down to the bone. Sara couldn't die. He couldn't imagine coming into a crime lab without her there. He couldn't imagine not seeing her load her coffee with sugar or not hearing her mindless humming and singing. He just couldn't make himself believe that she could die. When he had been dying, she had saved him. She had swooped in like an angel and saved his life. Now she was on the operating table and he was helpless. 


	40. Chapter XXXIX: Lights and Tunnels

_Chapter XXXIX_

_Lights, Tunnels and All That Stuff_

Dr. Grayson Smith walked out into the waiting room. He'd been operating for five hours and thirty two minutes. He was sweaty, exhausted and completely spent. Even then, he looked a hell of a lot better then the group gathered in the waiting room. They all sat up straighter and looked at him. There was a mix of hope and despair in their stares. For a moment he didn't know what to say. One man, a Texan, looked at him. "Did Sara...is she?" He almost choked on his words. Smith held up his hand and actually smiled, "Miss Sidle is recovering now." A huge sigh of relief tore through the room. "She can take visitors, limited of course, when she wakes up."

Brass looked up, his eyes suddenly wary. "Doc, she's not...she's not in a coma is she?" The surgeon rubbed his weary eyes, "What? No, no, she's just sleeping off the anesthesia. There's an observation window...but I must warn you, Miss Sidle doesn't look all that good right now."

Sofia stood. "I want to see her." No one argued with her.

* * *

It was unnatural. Sara Sidle lying still just was not supposed to happen. She was still, though, as still as death. The respirator pushed air into her chest and the heart monitor beeped, mechanically ticking off her pulse. Sofia pressed her hand against the glass between them and then rested her forehead against the cool window. Sara was alive.

* * *

The first thing that broke through the unrelenting darkness was the beeping. Her alarm was going off. God, she wasn't ready to get up. She went to hit snooze, but couldn't get her hand to respond. She opened her eyes. That was a slow process and when they were finally opened, she was confused. There was something in her throat and a horrible pain in her back. A face came into her vision. "Welcome back, Sara. You're at Desert Palms Hospital. You've got a tube down your throat to help you breathe. I'll go get the doctor and we'll get it taken out.

Everything was coming back in bits and pieces. After they had gotten the tube out of her, she had to ask. "Lindsey, is Lindsey OK?" One of the nurses looked at the her, "Which one is Lindsey? You've got a whole fan club in the waiting room, not to mention the press."

Sara blinked, "The press?" Her voice was wheezy and it croaked and cracked. The nurse nodded as they adjusted her bedding. "Oh yea, we were watching it in the lounge, you're on CNN. They're calling you a hero." Sara blinked. The morphine must have been more powerful then she'd thought. She wasn't a hero.

* * *

"_This is Maria Rymer with Channel 5 News. Bringing you the News you need to know first." The redhead stared into the camera. "Tonight's top story, The Doll Collector has finally been brought to Justice. Madison Daniels, Senate hopeful, was revealed as the killer who has been terrorizing Clark_ _County. Reports indicate that there are at least eight more deaths that can be attributed to her sadistic killing spree. Lindsey Willows, the latest victim was found in the basement of Daniel's home this afternoon, relatively unharmed. The same could not be said for her rescuer, though. CSI Sara Sidle of the Las Vegas_ _Crime Lab is currently undergoing surgery at Desert Palms for injuries sustained during the rescue. She is listed in critical condition." The reporter's face grew grim. "According to sources, Sidle had brought Daniels in for questioning earlier this week, going so far as to get a psychological profile on the woman. The Mayor, Sheriff and Assistant Director Conrad Ecklie of the Lab ordered Sidle to release Daniels despite evidence. While reports are varied, it is known that Sidle went to the Daniel's residence and found Lindsey Willows there, alive and well. Madison Daniels was shot during apprehension." There was a pause, then Maria Rymer began speaking again, the picture green-screened in behind her was of the Mayor, Sheriff and Conrad Ecklie, at a press conference. "The most disturbing aspect of this story is the fact that our leaders have decided that politics are more important than our safety. That power trumps justice. Tonight a real hero is on the brink of death because she did the right thing, now we all have to wonder, how safe can Vegas be when the police are caught up in red tape? The Mayor and Sheriff have a lot of explaining to do and all of Vegas is listening."_

The Sheriff turned off the television and rested his head on his hands. "Fuck me." On a purely political and shallow viewpoint, it was an election year. On a more moral view...he had made the mother of all mistakes. This entire case had been a series of fuck ups. Drunk SWAT jockies, the media circus, two of his deputies fucking on his time, and then there had been Sidle's Madison Daniels theory. It had been right; he knew that now. The entire nation, no the world knew. Sara Sidle was a hero and he was wearing the dunce cap. That stung, but what stung worse was the fact that he deserved to wear the dunce cap. He massaged his temples and tried to figure out the best way to run interference and do damage control.

* * *

He had done many autopsies, but never had he actually hated the person he was cutting open. Hate, that was exactly what he felt at the moment. Madison Daniels had killed all those innocent little girls, and stabbed Sara Sidle in the back. He didn't want, couldn't handle, the idea of Sara Sidle lying in one of his drawers. He could clearly remember, like it was yesterday, doing the post on Holly Gribbs.

He supposed that Holly was on a lot of people's minds. That in itself was ironic. Sara had come to investigate Holly's death...and now she had come almost full circle.

He shook his head and dragged his thoughts away from the morbid idea of Sara dying and looked down at the woman who had stabbed her. In death, Madison Daniels did not look powerful or evil or even insane; she was simply dead. Her body was riddled with bullet holes, some one had emptied a clip into her. He hoped it hadn't been Sofia. The two women were close, their embrace in his autopsy bay had told him that. To kill for one's lover was supposed to be a noble thing, but he knew that it could fester and ruin their relationship and that would be a pity.

He looked into Daniel's empty eyes, checking for hemorrhaging and he saw something. A contact lens. He carefully peeled it off of her eye and blue turned to hazel. As he was familiar with the case, that piece puzzled him. He went further and the more he went on, the deeper his confusion. Just who was Madison Daniels?

He typed up his final post report. There had been no word on Sara, though as soon as he turned this in, he was heading to the hospital. With the technical out of the way, he began to add his thoughts.

_Subject, Madison A. Daniels, died from multiple gun shot wounds, while it is impossible to isolate exactly which one killed her, there was a direct hit to the heart and that will be listed as the kill shot and COD. Furthermore, while the meaning of this is beyond my expertise, it is notable that despite outward appearance she kept, Madison Daniels was a natural brunette with hazel eyes. _

Beside him, the phone rang and he picked it up. When he laid it back down again, a few moments later, he had to smile. Sara Sidle was alive and she was awake. He printed out his report and signed it. The dead could wait a little while longer, he had a friend to see.


	41. Chapter XL: What are Friends For?

_Chapter XL_

_What Are Friends For?_

The doctor led her back to the ICU. Sara lay there, all but motionless. She was pale and looked very fragile lying there against the institutional white sheets of the hospital bed. Sofia took one of her hands between her own. "Hey." Sara looked at her, the dark circles of exhaustion were livid bruises against her ashen face. "Hey." There was an IV in each of Sara's arms and at least four bottles of assorted fluids, including blood, flowing into her. An oxygen tube was looped around her face, Sofia reached up and straightened it. Her hand brushed against Sara's cheek.

At the slight contact, Sofia could feel her walls crumbling. "I thought I had lost you." Sara pushed her face closer to the other woman's hand, turning her tentative touch into a gentle caress. "I didn't mean to scare you...but Lindsey." Sofia bent down and kissed Sara's forehead. "Lindsey is fine, thanks to you. You're so brave, so brave..." She pulled away and stared deep into Sara's brown eyes. "But so help me, Sara Sidle, if you ever scare me like that again..." Sara lifted one of her hands and shakily ran it through Sofia's blonde hair. "I wasn't really planning on it...I hate hospitals." Sofia laughed and looked at the door where the doctor was standing with Catherine and Lindsey. "There are a couple of very grateful girls here to see you...I've noticed you have a thing for blue eyed blondes." Sara onlysmiled, "Only you."

* * *

Lindsey was in a hospital dress and robe. She looked tired but no worse for the wear, at least not physically. Catherine stood beside her, hand on her daughter's shoulder. She looked tired and almost guilty. 

Catherine watched Sofia plant one last kiss on Sara's forehead. When Sofia pulled away, she saw the full power of the image before her. Sara laid there, pale and drawn. There were tubes everywhere and machines all around her monitored her vitals. Gone was the lively and energetic woman she had come to know. Sara was weak and hurt and that was her fault.

She could clearly remember meeting Sara's best friend just an hour before.

_She stopped by the waiting room. "Hey." Everyone looked up. Greg offered a weak smile. "Hey Catherine, how's Lindsey?" She had smiled, "She's okay, all things considered." A black haired woman, who'd been sitting by Sofia_ _stood up. Catherine had seen her before, but had not caught her name. The woman stalked up to her and stood almost nose to nose against her. "You're Catherine Willows?" The venom in her voice was unmistakable. Catherine blinked, "Yes...what of it?" The hard green stare went straight through her. "I was just wondering what made you so special. It takes a lot to make Sara cry." Grissom had stood and taken the woman by the shoulder and sat her back down. Her words echoed in her head though, 'It takes a lot to make Sara cry.'_

She had made Sara cry, more than once apparently. What kind of monster was she and how could she ever expect Sara to forgive her?

Lindsey was not held back by her mother's feelings of guilt and anguish. She went forward, to Sara's side. Her blue eyes were shadowed with a deep pain, but she did not let that stop her from seeing her personal hero. "Hey Sara." Sara turned her head and smiled. "Hey Linds, how are you doing?" The young blonde shrugged and smiled. "I'm okay. Mom said they took you into surgery. Was your doctor as hot as mine? I mean my doctor could have totally been on _ER _or _Gray's Anatomy_." Sara blinked, the combination of morphine and fast-paced teen chatter left her slightly confused. "I was so totally worried about you, but Warrick said that you were too stubborn to die." Sara smiled, "Something like that, kiddo." Lindsey nodded. "When you get out of the hospital, do you think we can do something together? We could hang out a little." Sara smiled and laid her head back against the pillows. "Only if your mom says it's okay."

Catherine stepped forward, "Hey Lindsey, how about you go with Sofia for a minute and tell the guys that they can fight to the death to see who gets to come up and see Sara next."

Sofia's head snapped up and met Catherine's eyes. They stood there; eyes locked not speaking. "Come on, Lindsey." Sofia offered her hand and the young Willows took it. Both of them sent Sara a look over their shoulders before leaving.

Sara winced when they were alone. "Catherine, I am so..." Catherine cut her off. "Don't you dare apologize to me, Sara Sidle."

Sara sighed and closed her eyes, "But I am." There was a beat of silence. "You shouldn't be." Sara opened her eyes. "What?"

Catherine came to her side and sat in the chair that Sofia had so recently vacated. "I'm the one that needs to apologize. All these years I've treated you so badly. Insulted you, questioned you, belittled you. When I needed you, though, you were right there. You risked your career, you risked your life for Lindsey...and I...I don't know what to say. Sorry doesn't cover it, Sara. You're a wonderful person and I have made an ass out of myself a hundred times over."

Sara smiled, "She's a good kid. I'm glad I got to her, Catherine, no matter what happened to me in the process." Catherine took one of her hands. "Sara...God, I'm somewhere between hugging and smacking you. I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough. You saved my little girl." Sara smiled, "The spirit moved me, huh, Cat?" She squeezed Sara's hand. "Sara I am truly sorry. Not a day will go by that I won't remember this. That I won't hate myself for treating you like I did." Sara squeezed her hand. "Catherine, don't beat yourself up. I forgive you, okay? I think...maybe I would like to be your friend. I don't want your undying gratitude, I'm no hero."

Tears glistened in Catherine's eyes. "How can you forgive me...after all I've done, after what I've said. After the way I treated you?" Sara only shrugged and tapped the IV in her hand. "Morphine. It's always done crazy things to me. Besides, if we can be friends, imagine what could happen next. World peace, The 'Niners could go back to the Super Bowl, hey Grissom may even lighten up." Catherine couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

Cambridge Parker came next. She fussed over Sara's chart, mumbling about procedures and medications and she cried a bit, then she got mad. She tucked the sheets and blankets around Sara and clucked her tongue. "I would hit you, but you're hurt. If you ever do something this monumentally stupid again, I will kill you. Do you hear me, Wild Woman?" Sara nodded, "Jeez, you act like I almost died, Cami." The psychologist scowled, "The fact that they had to restart your heart three times in the ER and once in the operating room makes that joke extremely not-funny." A tear slid down her cheek. "You're not allowed to die, Sara. You hear me?" Sara only smiled, "You know you love me." Cami nodded, "I do. I would lean over and kiss you, but your girlfriend carries a gun." Sara laughed, it was a weak and wheezy laugh, but one none-the-less. Cami sat down and propped her foot on the bed rail. "Now, speaking of your co-workers, what's the story on that sassy brunette, I think her name was Wendy."

* * *

The assorted CSIs, Detectives, and lab techs took their turns seeing Sara. After the parade of well wishers ended, Sofia came back in. Though the parade had lasted only half an hour, Sara was already fighting off sleep. She was about to give in to the pull of Morpheus and morphine when the door opened one more time. Despite fatigue and nagging pain, she had to smile. There was Sofia, in clean clothes. "I thought I'd come keep you company." Sara reached for her, and Sofia took her hand. Sara fell asleep with her lover's smooth alto voice in her ear. 

Sofia sat guard over Sara. In the dead of the night, when Sara was resting peacefully...she finally allowed the tears to fall. The beeping of the monitor that kept the rhythm of Sara's heart was the only sound that accompanied the tears. Amidst fear, guilt and heart stopping terror, Sofia had almost lost Sara. She looked down at their hands, still locked together. She had almost lost Sara. Sofia didn't sleep that night; she stayed awake, holding her lover's hand and listening to the machine mark the beats of her heart.

* * *

Lindsey had been released and Catherine had taken her daughter straight home. She was sleeping in her mother's bed. It was something she hadn't done for years. Catherine lay by her daughter and held her close. Lindsey let out a whimper in her sleep and Catherine flinched. She had come very close to losing her daughter...again. Catherine's blood pressure was still dangerously high and her nerves were threadbare. She stroked her daughter's hair to comfort the sleeping teen. Other then being a little dehydrated and in shock, there was nothing physically wrong with her. 

It was not her physical health Catherine was worried about though. Lindsey had been kidnapped, psychologically tortured, starved and then she'd killed her capturer. She had emptied an entire clip of bullets into Madison Daniels. Her baby girl had killed a woman. She had saved herself and Sara as well. She was both proud of and terribly saddened by that fact. Catherine was at a loss. Lindsey was still very much in shock and denial. She was pretending to be okay...but the girl wasn't okay. Catherine had to find a psychologist and...and... yet another round of tears welled up in her eyes. She didn't know what to do. She hadn't even been able to save her baby. Sara had rushed in like a knight in shining armor and saved Lindsey...and had gotten stabbed for her efforts... and had almost died. Though she knew it was not rational, she couldn't help but feel that everything was her fault. If she had been a better mother, Lindsey wouldn't have been kidnapped. If she had been a better friend, Sara wouldn't have needed to go to such extremes to prove herself. If she had been a better CSI they would have caught Daniels long before she'd ever laid eyes on Lindsey. Despite all of that, though, Sara had forgiven her. No, she was no hero, Sara Sidle was a Saint. Catherine lay there, unable to sleep, holding her daughter close, feeling her girl breathe in and out...reminding herself that her daughter was still alive, she was still here with her mother, where she belonged.

Author's Note: Woo-hoo. She's alive and going to eventually be well. Plus Catherine is feeling guilty and will be for a long, long time. Yes. I gave into peer pressure and we already see the beginings of the much called for Cami/Wendy 'ship. Sigh I just couldn't say 'No'.


	42. Epilogue

_Epilogue_

Lindsey was safe, at home with Sam and Lily. Catherine hadn't wanted to leave her, but she had to do something. The business card was in her hand. She had to know what it was all about. So here she was, yet again, in front of a building that contained some of Vegas' darkest fantasies. She waited for the door to open. When it did, the unforgettable woman who opened the door inclined her head ever so slightly. "Hello again, Ms. Willows, I've been expecting you." She moved aside, "Please, come in."

They walked down the ornate and opulent halls. "I am glad that you will not be joining my little circle."

Catherine nodded and held up the card. "You mean 'Never Forget'." The dominatrix nodded.

Lady Heather led her to a large and darkly beautiful sitting room. She took a seat and crossed her leather clad legs. "After my little...outburst" Catherine gave her a dubious look. If horse-whipping the man who'd killed her daughter in the middle of the desert was an outburst, Catherine would hate to see Lady Heather's version of "pissed off". The woman continued, "I found myself at a loss. I went to grief counselors and psychologists. One man had the audacity to suggest that my lifestyle is a cry for help." She flicked her hand in the air, as if dismissing an insect. "Obviously, they were no help. Some time later I heard about a man whose daughter had been found in the chimney. Since you worked the case, I will not bore you with the details. I sought him out, and so it began."

Lady Heather's moss green eyes looked distant and were filled with pain. "Even after justice is served, there is still much to deal with, loss and emptiness to go through. There are so many, just here in Vegas, who have lost so much."

Catherine nodded, "And you help them?" The other woman fixed her haunted green eyes on Catherine, "We help each other. There are things that most do not understand about these investigations. Forensics for example, the how and the why of what the police does. How to handle the press, plan the funeral, there is so much to do and one only has the energy and ability to deal with so much before they can go no further."

Catherine nodded and then the full blow of the other woman's words hit her. "The press? You were the one leaking things to the press?" Lady Heather actually smirked. "As I've said before, I have clients and connections every where in Vegas. A few phone calls here and there. I wanted to make sure that no one would ever forget this monster, this demon that plagued Vegas. Surely you understand? How is your daughter?"

Catherine sighed, "She's coping." Lady Heather nodded, "And Miss Sidle, I heard she is recovering." Catherine nodded. "She is. Of course you knew that. You turned Sara into Vegas's own hero and the Mayor, Sheriff and Ecklie into the three stooges." Lady Heather shrugged, "The truth is not always pretty but it is better then a lie. If someone would have listened to Miss Sidle, well much would have gone differently." She paused for a moment and tapped a manicured nail against her blood red lips. "I've always wanted to meet Miss Sidle, especially now. She is very talented from what I hear." Catherine nodded, "She's the best." Before, perhaps, she would have been put off by this conversation. By hearing a complete stranger sing Sara's praises. Now, though, Sara deserved it.

Lady Heather shook her head. "I honestly don't know how you missed this, Ms. Willows." Catherine shook her head, "Catherine, please." Lady Heather smiled, "Catherine, then. I worked very closely with your lab in all this. Getting information, explanations of your work to share with the others." At Catherine's blank stare, Heather rose. "Come, I'll show you."

Catherine stared at the papers and booklets that Lady Heather had procured. There was no doubt that these were from the Crime Lab...but there was something off.

Lady Heather smiled, "Mr.Milgiss has been very helpful, as you can see." Catherine nodded, there was something she didn't share with Lady Heather, though. Not over tea, not as she left. The knowledge sank in when she returned to her car though. There was no RobertG. Milgissat the Las Vegas Crime Lab. When one rearranged the letters of the name though, it became clear exactly who Lady Heather's mysterious never-seen benefactor was.

Gilbert Grissom was still very much in the velvet and leather grasp of his dark Lady.

* * *

Gil Grissom watched the fiery sun set over the desert city. The light faded away in the shadows and darkened the alley ways. The city, lit by neon was a haven for sin and evil during the night. With the sunrise, in hours time would come the knowledge that for the moment, the demons of Vegas were silent. 

For the moment, the blood thirsty demons were sated...but at what cost? The cost this time...had been too high. Once, long ago, a younger, less jaded Gil Grissom might have thought that there was no line he wouldn't cross to bring down those who diseased society, the killers and the rapists who plagued his city. Now, as an older, wiser man, he knew. The line had been crossed. The demons had been silenced, but at the cost of little Lindsey's innocence and Sara's blood. Too high a price. The worst part was that the demons would rise again, they always did.

Madison Daniels had been evil. He was not a man that was especially given to placing that label, but there was no other word for her. He'd read the reports, Dr. Parker's psychological evaluation, Dr. Robbin's Autopsy report. Had she been insane? While they would never truly know for sure, he tended to think that she was not. She had known what she was doing. She was the worst kind of killer. She had been twisted and then had gained power. What had twisted her like that? He could not be quite sure. The profile suggested that her parents had tried to force perfection out of her...then she'd somehow contorted the facts. That deep in her brain, something had snapped. It would have happened when she was a teenager, but the reports were unclear. They had looked through her private things, journals dating back decades. Her parents had been supportive and loving, Madison had just, for lack of better words, been a bad seed. She had, from the time she'd started keeping the records, been disturbed. In her high school years, she had manipulated fellow students and teachers alike. In college she had slept with the Dean for her place as Valedictorian. After college she had carefully plotted the death of her parents. Then, tragedy had struck and she'd found out that she could not have children. That marked the true beginning of her sickness. While the precise root of it was unknown, Grissom suspected that it might have been connected with her grandmother who had constantly pounded a young Madison with lectures and lessons about being a proper lady. It was all very confusing, and very incomplete. Madison Daniels was quite dead, but her evil lived on. For that alone, he damned her to the hell where he was sure she must be burning at. If there was indeed a God, and he still sometimes believed that there was, surely he had condemned her for her many, many sins.

No matter how much pain and suffering, how much blood and tears...they always came back. Evil flocked to Vegas every day. He, along with his team and countless others who worked for the LVPD stood against them. Like the few Christian knights defending the last strong hold against the all-mighty Turks. They stood in the sun, waiting for the demons to attack again, waiting to push the evil back once more. He had said many times that he only collected evidence; he was a liar. He was a CSI, a protector. His job wasn't just to follow the evidence; his job was to hold back the monsters that preyed on the innocent.

This time he had failed. He had not protected those he held dear. Sara was recovering, though it would be months before she could return. Lindsey was faced with the daunting knowledge that she, at age fourteen, had killed a man and Vegas was reeling from the events that had transpired.

* * *

Las Vegas, Nevada, home to all of the seven deadly sins, among many, many others, began a new night. It was a dark abyss where drugs, sex and murder were far more common then jackpots. Demons of the worst kind, those parading around in human form, once again began to feed off the corrupt buffet of Las Vegas. 

Despite the darkness, though, there was light. Lovers watched over their partners, hands clasped together. Mothers comforted their children, chasing away nightmares. Friends stood watch over the fallen. Even in the land that lust had built, there was love. There were also the protectors, the chosen few who stood against the demons, holding them at bay. The battle would rage on, as it had since man had first become what he is. Good and Evil, Light and Darkness, Love and Hate, Man versus Man, Man versus self and Man versus Demon. The outcome is never certain, only the knowledge remained. The demons would keep coming.

Fin

Author's Note: Here we are, at the end of another tale. I hope everyone enjoyed reading it, I definitly enjoyed writing it. We finish up with Lady Heather making the big time come-back I've been salivating over for a while. I knew at the begining that this was when she was going to be returning, but it's been hard to hold off. Get used to her presence and 'NeverForget'because she will be playing a rather large role in the next story.

There are some thanks to go out: HoneyLynx86, my beta reader, is the best and the story would not have been as good as it is without her coming behind me and fixing things here and there.

Big thanks to icklebitodd, El Gringo Loco, bene, Tha Gurl Next Door and anyone else who reviewed. The constant stream of praise and critique really kept me going.

Unfortunatly, due to circumstances slightly beyond my control, I will be taking a hiatus and won't be writing or posting...or in contact at all. It could be days,weeks, or it could be months, I'm not sure. When I do get back, though...

Coming Soon: _Gods of Vegas_, Part III of III

When terror strikes at the heart of Vegas, the CSIs have to track down the root of the problem before it's too late. The explosive case will grab the LVPD by the throat, taking one of their own and putting the world on it's toes. Set against a backdrop of political rivalry, old flames, new passion and a dark newcult, everything can and will change for the CSIs.


End file.
